


He of Cloven Hoof

by thefuckistevvs



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Amputation, Anal Sex, Blood, Body Horror, Cults, Demons, Flesh as horror, Horror, Kinda, M/M, Oral Sex, Priest AU, Psychological Horror, Religion, Suburban, Teenager Death, Violence, handjobs, i've been meaning to make a horror thing for a while lets see how this turns out, supernatural horror, will tag as I go, you'll see - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-16
Updated: 2019-01-21
Packaged: 2019-03-05 15:13:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 21
Words: 83,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13390521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thefuckistevvs/pseuds/thefuckistevvs
Summary: Devil got my motherDevil got my fatherDevil gonna get me one of these daysMako Rutledge is a disgraced priest, that lives in relative peace at the edge of town.And then one day he meets Jamison Fawkes





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> _I don't wanna burn_  
>  I don't wanna drown  
> I don't wanna lay in no coffin in the ground
> 
>  
> 
> HELLO!!! i literally came back from vacation some hours ago and i thought about this and i HAD to write it.
> 
> basically i've been meaning to do my own thing with demon/priest au, but this isn't exactly like that. its a bit different? Look, Mako is a priest, it counts, ok.  
> Anyways i spent a lot of time trying to figure out how i wanted this to be, and i think I finally did it. 
> 
> BASICALLY this will be a horror story and its going to have a lot of supernatural elements and it will also be something new for me. like i said i've been dying to write horror and the like, and hopefully i can pull it off with this fic. I hope y'all like it! No beta readers cus its 2 am and i literally started to work on this as soon as i got home from vacation (5 hour car ride lolllll)
> 
> Update Schedule on this one is unknown cus i still got like more fics to work on, but hey! i was super hype on working on this, so like, i HAD to man. It was in my blood. i just had to.
> 
> This is based on this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgtlxhM-vOY
> 
> Thank y'all and i hope you like it!!!

The branches creaked as the wind gently moved them. The air made noises that sounded like hisses, whistling as leaves rustled and fell into the ground. Apart from the singing of the wind, the forest was at ease.  
Deep into the forest, a wind chime rattled in the air. The metallic sound echoed gently, the chime hanging from the porch of the wooden cabin. It was old, rust already covering the small metal tubes. On the porch was also a rocking chair, old and patched together way too many times. It creaked under the weight of the man on it, barely able to hold his weight. Custom made. 

The man sighed as he chewed on his cigarette, reading a book on his thick hands. The pages kept being ripped out of his hands due to the wind, and after looking up into the forest, he decided to call it a day.  
He cracked his bones as he stood up, the wood beneath him whining. He took a deep breath as he placed the book under his armpit. It was still early, and he needed to run some errands. Annoyed at this, he grumbled as he entered his small cabin in the woods, leaving the book on the table next to his door, and picking up the keys of his old, beaten up truck. He rolled them into his hands while he closed the front door to his home. He sighed softly, making his way into his old truck, getting on and turning it on. 

He kept on chewing on his cigarette as he drove down the trail into the main road of the small town. It was still early in the morning and yet the sky was cloudy- it would rain that night. He sighed as he remembered he needed to fix the roof in some parts of his cabin, lest water leak through.

Mako Rutledge could already tell it was going to be a very long day. 

His thick fingers fumbled with the old radio, twisting the little knobs until he got to some classical jazz music. The drive towards the town was about fifteen minutes long with no traffic. It was a weekday, and he took breathes out of his cigarette as he looked around him. He passed through the house area, and there was no one around.

It was a Wednesday, so kids were in schools. People had already left for their jobs, so there was really no one around. The silence of the neighborhood made Mako feel at ease, rolling his tongue on his mouth as the jazz played on his old radio. If it was as empty and slow downtown, then maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad day. 

He parked his beaten up truck just next to the grocery shop. As he expected, the street was pretty empty apart from some cars. It looked like everybody was busy with something else, so no one would pay too much attention to him. He hopped off the truck, shoving the keys into the pockets of his jacket after locking the door and made his way into the mart.   
As soon as he entered Mako was greeted by elevator music, a cold breeze and uncaring employees. He picked up a basket and realized he had forgotten the list at home, hopefully he would be able to pick everything up, lest he would have to return.  
He worked his mind as he went through the aisles, picking everything he remembered he needed. 

Soup, Sauce, Eggs, Instant meals- things that weren’t necessarily essential but he was rather fond of. He picked up the bread, milk, soda, vegetables and other things he was sure he didn’t have. He picked some potato chips, for the hell of it.   
Cereal, cookies, rice and then he was set he believed. He quickly took his things to the bored young cashier.

The young man didn’t really even acknowledge him when Mako placed his basket into the counter. At first he just stared, waiting for the boy to look at him or at least react, but kept reading his robotics magazine, a toothpick rolling in his mouth as he reclined his chin on his left hand. 

“Ahem,” Mako coughed, but the young man didn’t seem to listen to him, still staring at the magazine in the counter, so Mako decided to try again. “ **Ahem** ,”

This surely caught the boy’s attention, twitching and then staring up at Mako. The old man blinked when he saw the boy’s striking yellow eyes, as the cashier just rolled his eyes and stood up but just a little, staring up at Mako and faking a smile.

“What can I help ya with, sir?”

Mako knew he had seen this boy before but he couldn’t exactly pinpoint where. He had lived in that town for about ten years, however. It was really small, so everybody pretty much knew everyone. He probably had seen him running around before.   
The man didn’t say a thing as he shoved the basket of groceries towards the cashier. Normally he wouldn’t be this rude with the staff, but this boy had been annoying from the beginning, so he didn’t mind being petty today. “I’m buying.”

“Yeah okay,” The blond shoved his magazine off, and grabbed the basket.

Instead of a right arm however, his sleeve was rolled up to reveal a stump. That’s how Mako knew about him- it was the Fawkes kid. He didn’t have an arm, something about a surgery. He suddenly felt like shit when he saw the young man struggling to pick everything up with only one hand and scanning the prices, but when he tried to help Fawkes basically scowled.

“I got it!” He hissed. It probably was a sore spot for him. Didn’t matter, he just wanted to get his things and leave. 

“You new here?” Mako asked as Fawkes slowly scanned the produce, staring at the screen all the while.

“Yup,” He nodded, not breaking contact with the machine. “Just started this week.”

“That’s good.”

“Yup,” Fawkes said with a flat tone. He bit his lip as he summed the prices on the screen. “What about ye? Ya doing okay, Father?”

Mako cringed at that. He bit his lip as he looked at the young cashier, who didn’t seem to have any ill in his voice. Normally, that title came with insults or sarcasm, but the Fawkes boy didn’t seem to be malice. He just stared up at Mako with his golden eyes.

“I… people don’t call me that. Anymore.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Fawkes bit his lip. “Know ya haven’t been in tha’ church for a while, but thought ya didn’t mind bein’ called that.”

“It’s okay.” Well, it wasn’t really okay in his book. He rather not be called that anymore, but when you move into a small town and start being the priest in the local church for some years, that stuff stays with you, unfortunately. Fawkes didn’t seem to understand the circumstances, however, just that he wasn’t the local priest anymore, so he couldn’t bring himself to stop him from calling him that. 

Besides, what did it matter? It’s not like he would interact with the boy too much. He was just but a cashier. 

He paid for his groceries, and left. He shoved the bags into the passenger seat of his truck and rubbed his face. While he had groceries he was not in the mood for cooking tonight. He should just order some takeout and be done with it.   
With that idea in mind he drove towards the local pizza place. Whenever he ordered pizza from home the delivery boys would get lost anyways, it was better to just pick it up from the store itself.  
It was one of the few chains in the town. It was a small store, with a bored teenager at the other side of the counter. She stared at Mako with big eyes as he ordered. One family sized pizza, with four toppings: Mushrooms, bacon, ham and italian sausage. The girl punched the order and said it would be about fifteen minutes before he could pick it up. 

He nodded and sat down on one of the tables inside the store, picking up the small menu and going through it, looking at specials and combos. He wasn’t interested in any of that, occupying his mind before the pizza was ready.   
Before his order was done a couple more customers came into the store, grown men, younger than him but adults. They stared at Mako and whispered between them, surely about him. The older man just sighed, placing the menu back into the table and staring out of the window to watch the cars passing by. 

They kept pointing and talking about him, and for one second Mako considered just leaving with his stupid pizza until his order was called. He paid and then left quickly, but not before they managed to call him out.

“Bye, _Father_.”

Mako grit his teeth, clutching the pizza box close and making his way to his truck. The sooner he was out of this stupid little shitty town the better.

He was now angry, shoving the pizza box next to the grocery bags and quickly backed up his truck, and started to drive away.   
If he could, he would move out. He barely makes money, still being paid by the church but it was very little, he could survive “comfortably” but not really able to spend it a lot. If he wanted to move it would be very difficult but, fuck it, at this point it seemed like it was the most sensible option. 

But he was old. He was fucking 45 years old- he couldn’t just start new again. That time had passed. He would have to figure out how to live comfortably and not get annoyed.  
It seemed that the young ones and the teens in town really didn’t mock him- if anything they feared him a little. Fawkes didn’t even seem to know why Mako was so hated in town. That was good, he figured. He rather have people shut up and fear him than mock him and call him Father. 

Mako groaned. Everything was stupid. He just turned up the sound of his radio while he drove back home.

About fifteen minutes later, Mako had arrived to his small shack. The wind was still strong, making the wind chime sing metallic tunes. It calmed him down, as he dragged the groceries back and pizza box inside in one trip. He needed to relax, he was too old for this shit. 

So, he took the pizza box near him, reclined on his favorite chair and ate away the pizza, as he read his favorite book. Soon enough the villagers hate and sarcasm melted away as he dived deep into the book.   
Before he even realized it, he fell asleep, book still on his lap.

\---

Mako cursed himself as he made his trip to the grocery store again. He rather just stay home and fuck off, but now he had a grocery list and there were many things he forgot from the previous day. He would normally ignore it, but there were some things there that he really needed. 

Light Bulbs, nails, some wood glue… things necessary for the repairs for the leaks in his house. There used to be an actual hardware store, but the owner died recently and as far as he knew his kin were fighting over it, so for now he would have to do with whatever they sold in the general store. It was annoying, but it was better than nothing he assumed. 

Again he made a beeline towards the cashier. The staff was the same boy from the previous day, tapping his fingers against the counter as Mako made his way to his line- after all, it was the only line open. 

“Morning,” Mako greeted, shoving the basket at the boy.

“Oh, hey, good morning!” He greeted happily. He seemed to be in a better mood than yesterday, for once. He started scanning the items, and even smiled at Mako.

“You’re in a good mood,” He commented for no reason in particular.

“Today’s me birthday, mate!” he chuckled. “Twenty one! Gonna get a real celebration with me folks tonight.”

“That’s nice.”

The blond made a face, however. “Told them I saw ya yesterday. They weren’t too happy, though. Wouldn’t tell me why!” 

That just confirmed that he had no actual idea why Mako was such an outcast. Eh, he wasn't going to break it to the kid. He was going to learn eventually. It’s not something that he wanted to even think about, so he didn’t say a thing. 

“I think ye are a good guy, though mate. Remember ya some years ago, when ya were tha priest. Never liked church, but ya made it interesting.” He looked up at Mako with big eyes. “Made it an actual thing rather than a chore, y’know? I liked it. Sorry ya had to stop for whatever.”

Mako wasn’t sure how to react. He blinked and nodded, whispering a quick thanks before he paid and left. 

It had been the first time in years someone had praised him as a priest- hell, even when he was the Father, people would come over all the time and try to dictate how to give _his_ sermon like they had the right. It was a breath of fresh air.  
And, it felt really nice too.

Flustered, he picked up his things and left. The day was sunny, so he would try to get as many repairs done in his home as possible.

\---

As planned, Mako spent the entire day doing small reparations to his house. The most urgent ones were the goddamn leaks on his roof. Somehow, by using a lot of ingenuity and crap he bought from the general store, he was able to fix them. After doing that he changed his light bulbs, cleaned around, and just tidied up. It was already dark by the time he had finished with everything.

Content, he sighed as he laid down on his favorite chair as well, rolling his shoulders. He picked up his book- he was close to finishing it. A smile curled up to his lips as he heard the wind chime whistle, the air rustling the leaves outside his home. It was a pleasant night.

He licked his fingers as he changed the page, eyes focusing into the words in the pages. He just started the last chapter, eyes landing into the first word on the page.

_”Her lips-_

Frantic knocking brought him out of his trance. It was so sudden, he was shocked for a few seconds before he registered it. Then, it happened again. A barrage of very frantic knocking brought him back to earth. He very quickly stood up, putting the book away as he walked towards his front door.

It was about eleven p.m., who the hell was knocking? He never got mail, apart from the cheques from the church and even that had been delivered that month. 

He stopped dead in his tracks. Just who the fuck was knocking on his door at the middle of the night? He lived in the middle of the woods. It wasn’t like whoever it was would accidentally stumble into him- he lived pretty much away from everybody else. Who the hell was on the other side?

He gulped as more frantic knocking came, this time the door shaking so hard for a second Mako thought it would come down. That’s it. He grabbed the shotgun that was at the side of his door, loaded it, and then opened the door, shotgun pointed at whoever was making the racket.

“F- jesus fuck! Don’t shoot- oh my God please don’t shoot!”  
The figure laid on their knees, holding their head with their hands- hand? It only had one arm. Mako saw a glimpse of patchy blond hair and recognized who it was.

“Fawkes?”

“Please don’t shoot! Please!” He didn’t seem to have a weapon at all, but he looked absolutely terrified. 

“For Fuck’s sake,” he shoved the shotgun away and gave a hand to lend to the boy. He took it, shaking. “What are you doing here so late?! Did you get lost in the woods?”

When Fawkes grabbed his hand Mako felt it warm and sticky, not a good sign. Fawkes stood almost straight and he was alarmingly tall- not taller than Mako himself but still pretty damn tall- but then Mako realized that Fawkes was completely covered in blood.  
Head to toe covered in blood. 

“Jesus christ! What the fuck hap-”

“Please Father, let me in. Please for the love of God let me in!”

“What?! I need to take you to a hospital-” 

“Please!” Fawkes sounded desperate, his hand digging into Mako’s forearm as he looked up to him with beginning eyes. “Your house is blessed- right? Ye are a priest- of course it is! Please! You have to let me in!”

Mako felt a chill run down his spine as he stared at the youngster. He was covered in blood, he should be taking him to a hospital.

“Come on, I’ll take you to the hospital-”

“No! Please! You don’t understand, they’re-”

Mako was dragging Fawkes towards his truck when he felt _something_. Some kind of chill, a paralizing guttural horror that dug deep into his guts, poured out of him. It felt like several needles in his intestines, his throat closing up and his eyes watered at it. It felt as if something was carving up his massive back, opening him up and dissecting him.   
It was terrifying. It felt like nothing he had ever felt before. 

He let go of Fawkes and stared at him, and it felt like he was staring at an abyss. The boy was covered with blood, golden eyes staring at him with raw horror and dread, frame shaking like it would become undone at any minute. The earth was screaming.  
It wasn’t right. It wasn’t right. Every single cell of his body told him that this was not right, that there was something out there, something lurking, something that would absolutely tear him apart given the opportunity, and that it would maul and feast into his body, his soul. His limbs and flesh, it would destroy him until there was nothing more.

Mako hurled into the ground. 

“Come on!” Fawkes used his one arm to grab into Mako and drag him inside his own house, and Mako let him. It felt like the woods was screaming his name and yet Mako did not want to hear. It felt like his mind was being dragged into the woods, into the forest, waiting to swallow him up.

As soon as he stepped into his cabin, his body felt lighter and better. He felt like the gunk washed off him, and Fawkes shoved the door closed and shoved chairs and tables in front of it, for good measure. The boy panted, terrified as he pulled his own hair and stared at the door. A cross hung from it- Mako had put it there when he had moved and never took it away.

“What,” Mako cleaned the vomit off his mouth with his sleeve. He coughed, and took a closer look at the boy.

He was shaking, still covered in blood but didn’t actually look harmed… it probably wasn’t his own blood. His golden eyes glowed in contrast to the blood. He looked terrified, like he had seen how he would die.

“Who the _fuck_ are you?!” Mako screamed, suddenly scared of the skinny man in front of him. Whatever he was he had brought… _that_ with him, and Mako didn’t like that.

The young man gulped and stared back.

“My name is Jamison Fawkes.”


	2. Butterfly Chop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mako Rutledge was not a regular man

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mako has now to deal with Jamison Fawkes
> 
> Hello!! I know i just posted chapter 1o f this yesterday, but tbh, im suuuuuper excited for this fic. I just am SUPER into it, my guys. Hopefully y'all also find it fun. I am SO into this, you have NO idea
> 
> I hope y'all like it!! Reminder that this fanfic has very graphic depictions of violence! There is a lot of violent stuff in this one. So- watch out.
> 
> Thank y'all for writing!

Mako Rutledge was not a regular man.

For one, he was a catholic priest. This wouldn’t be too strange, if it wasn’t that Mako looked nothing like a regular priest.  
He was big and fat, huge. Bulging muscles in his arms from all those years lifting weights- a hobby he still maintained after being ordained as a priest. 

He was an okay priest, as far as he knew. He wasn’t as kind as Father Sawes, or perhaps as loyal to God as Father Mackenzie, but Mako liked to think he was okay. He had been told that his sermons comforted people, his words were soothing and would bring them peace. So, he took it in stride. He liked to think he was soothing, despite his outwards appearance. 

Soon enough he was sent to work in a small town, near some woods in the middle of nowhere. The priest there had unfortunately passed due to old age, and the due to how far away they were the news didn’t reach them until some months had passed.   
After some deliberation it was decided that Father Rutledge would be the one sent to give sermons to the small town. There wasn’t any specific reason to, apart that Mako had lived in a similar area before in his life, near forests and farms. Mako accepted, and he was on his merry way.

The town of Suilla was as he expected. It was pretty small, small personal business rather than chains downtown, quaint people walking around talking and greeting each other. They stared at Mako’s truck as he made his way through the town, deciding to go to the church before arriving to his new home- it was still early, after all. 

People kept staring as he pulled up to the church, parking his vehicle and stepping outside. The building seemed old, but in good state. The building was built out of wood, one story tall apart from the tower at the front of the structure. It had a gable roof, the tower on front interrupting the roof. Its top had a cone type of roof, tall and elegant with a cross just at the tip. Some tiles were missing, and some parts of the structure were a little bit damaged by time and water, but all things considered the small church looked pretty okay. He would have to look into the building, to check if it didn’t need some crucial reparations. 

He knew the mayor would already be waiting inside of the building, so without wasting more time he knocked on the front door with ta thick fist. About two minutes passed, and before he knocked again the door was opened swiftly.

A woman older than him opened the door. She got startled when she saw Mako, but adjusted her glasses and stared up at the man, slightly nervous. 

“Father Rutledge?” She smiled.

Mako nodded and extended his hand. “Pleased to meet you, ma’am, I assume you’re mayor Brown?”

“Please, father, call me Dora.” she took his hand and shook it, his palm engulfing her thin fingers. “I’ve been expecting you today! I must admit, you are not quite what I… expected.”

She laughed nervously and Mako just shrugged. He knew he looked nothing like other priests, but she would have to deal with it.

“However I was told many great things about you, so I hope you have a great time in this small town.”

“Thank you. I am sure I will enjoy this little quiet town.”

 

\---

 

He huffed as he closed all the blinds, making sure no one could see inside his home. He was sweating, skin cold and felt his heart beat hard against his chest. He closed the backside door as well, blocking it with chairs and tables. 

The windows could be broken, but he didn’t have enough stuff to actually block them. If it came to that, well…  
He wasn’t even sure what the hell he was keeping out. Mako knew that whatever it was, it needed to stay _out_. When he finished he returned to the living room, where Jamison stood in, staring at the blood on his arms without saying a thing. 

“Jamison,” Mako placed his hands on the young man’s thin shoulders, and started to shake. “Jamison!”

He looked up at Mako, golden eyes wide and glassed over. Whatever adrenaline had brought him to Mako’s cabin had vanished and he could barely stand. “Jamison, look at me. What happened? Whose blood is that? What is going on?!”

“Father I-” Jamison looked back at the door, and back at Mako. “It’s my 21’st birthday.”

Mako recalled the boy mentioning that earlier that day, when he was at the store. But what did that have to do with anything?

“I don’t understand.”

“It-it-” His eyes went wide with horror, sudden realization hitting the young man. Jamison started shaking violently, bloodied hand grabbing at Mako’s forearm tightly. His golden eyes bore into Mako’s tears spilling out. “My parents! It got me parents!”

“Jamison, what did? What happened? What happened to your parents?”

“It- it appears at night. It appeared and- and it fuckin’- me parents-”

“What? What happened to them?”

The blond stared at Mako for a long, long time, until his eyes rolled into the back of his head, entire body going limp. If he hadn’t been holding him, Jamison would have crashed against the floor. 

“Oh, fuck,” Mako whispered as he took a hold of the boy. He dragged him to the couch, but first he shoved a blanket on top of it, he rather not have his couch covered in blood. 

Jamison was out cold. Mako ran to the bathroom, retrieving towels and a first aid kit. His thick fingers undressed the young man, taking his bloodied plaid shirt and took it off. The blood had completely ruined it, drenched by dried blood. Even if he didn’t look like he was hurt Mako still needed to check him. He would have taken him to the hospital, but just remembering something lurked outside made him change his mind.

His entire body was sticky, covered with blood. Mako cleaned it all off, ruining his towels off it. He examined his torso, limbs, face and legs.   
Jamison was very skinny, almost malnourished even. His ribs poked out, and his skin was pale and bruised at some parts. There were bruises in the shape of fingertips on his throat, along with some small scratches, but there were not other wounds. That blood was absolutely not his. 

By the time he had finished he was still asleep, slightly shivering. Mako wrapped him with a non-stained blanket, and left him on the couch as he got a plastic bag to get rid of the stained clothes. 

His name was Mako Rutledge, and he was throwing blood stained clothes into a plastic bag, to bury in the woods later. Because, whatever the hell happened he knew that just having a plastic bag full of blood stained clothes was _not_ a good idea. 

His eyes traveled to the front door. The wind chimes had stopped, as if the world outside of his cabin had stopped. He gulped, dragging a chair a few feet in front of the door and grabbed his shotgun, placing the rounds at the small coffee table next to him. Mako lit a cigarette, rolling it between his teeth before he took a breath out of it. He felt the smoke fill his lungs, smell sticking on him while he took his gun and pointed it at the door.

And then, he waited. 

 

\---

 

Something,

Something digging, biting. Scratching. Huffing. Spitting. Breaking.

It ripped at his door. It clawed. It moaned at the other side. It wanted in. It sputtered and convulsed, twitched, whined like a wounded animal.

It pulsated, it bled. It bit at the door, crying and biting, puking, retching. It was inside out. It was backwards. It was all patched up as if a child had taken it, destroyed it and tried to rearrange it once more. It was bloody, it was thin, it was long and it was

It screamed at him. Hollered. Demanded to him to open the door. Demanded him to let him in. that he was, he was, he was, he was going to get there anyways, open the door, he would open the door.

He would open the door  
Open the door open the door open the door open the door open the door open the door 

 

Door open the door it bleeds and claws and screams and kills and calls and _open the door, Father_

 

And it calls

M

A k

O

_Father_

It clawed at his heart, it destroyed him. It was a voice he heard several years ago, one he would hear whenever he was scared, that would rip his brain apart, would dig deep into his nerves and hollowed him out.

_Father?_   
_im scared_

 

“Father?”

Mako fell off his chair when he heard the knocking on his door. He pointed the shotgun at it immediately, heart beating so hard he thought he would have a heart attack. He grit his teeth, when the knocking returned. It wasn’t frantic, if anything it was gentle and soft.

“Father Rutledge?”

Mako took a deep breath and placed his shotgun away, pinching his forehead. It was Mayor Dora Brown, knocking at his door at fucking… he looked at his wristwatch. Eight in the morning. He had overslept, but honestly he didn’t consider sleeping in front of a door, hoping for some kind of hellbeast to pop out to be “sleep”.  
He blinked, looking around him. The Jamison boy was gone. For one second Mako thought maybe he had imagined it all, the awful dream and the experience were just part of his nightmares- until he saw the plastic bag where he had shoved all his bloody things in. Hell, the fact that he had awoken on his chair, hugging his shotgun meant that it hadn’t been a bad dream. 

Where was Jamison, then? 

The knocking came back, and this time it was a little bit forceful than before. There were still bloody prints in some of his things, and there was also the bag of blood. He bit his lip, and decided to just not open the door. He didn’t move, waiting until the woman left.  
After fifteen minutes of knocking and huffing, the woman swore under her breath. He could hear her annoyed footsteps as she got into her car and drove away, the sound getting weaker and weaker. 

Well. He would certainly have to deal with that later, whatever the hell was what she wanted. For now he had far more important things in mind. The first thing on the list was the Fawkes boy.

He looked for him over his house, thinking he had moved to Mako’s bedroom but there was no signs of the blond. He looked around every nook and cranny he could have hid in, but it was as if he had never been there. Mako also noticed that some of his crosses were missing.

“Dammit,” he whispered under his breath. He had absolutely no idea what to do now, everything was just far too weird. 

Okay, so, recap. He was hanging out in his home, when Jamison Fawkes came knocking on his door, covered in blood and begging to be let inside. When he tried to take him to the hospital Mako felt like something was lurking outside, ready to kill him. Something… demonic.  
Hm. Maybe he was losing his mind.

He ventured outside of his cabin. The strange, horrific feeling was gone. The smell of the woods was welcomed, as he took a deep breath on his porch.   
Mako could pretend that nothing happened and go back to his boring life, but he was intrigued.   
If anything, Mako wanted to pick up the newspaper and check what happened during the night. 

He really didn’t want to go to town, but he also didn’t feel exactly too safe in his old cabin. If anything, maybe going downtown would help him decide if everything was just a fever dream or not. 

Fine, okay. He grabbed his truck keys, locked his cabin up and ventured into town.

He was making his way into downtown, but he didn’t even reach the end of the road. He was crossing the residential area until he found one of the houses surrounded by police officers. He felt himself still as he pulled over, eyes focusing on the mailbox at the front of the house.

 _Fawkes_.

Fuck. It was the kid’s house. 

Against better judgement he stepped outside into the curb and made his way. The officers looked at him puzzled, one of them stepping over to stop him from actually entering the perimeter. Bloodied footprints went in and out of the house, disappearing into the curb. The front door had been torn apart, blood dripping from it. He couldn’t see the inside, but Mako guessed it was not a pretty sight.

“Excuse me sir, you can’t cross the perimeter.”

“What happened here?”

“There has been a murder, Father,” another cop said as she pointed at the inside of the house. “Fawkes family. Husband and Wife. You knew them, Father?”

“No, no. I don’t believe so.” Mako tried to recall if he actually knew the couple, but he couldn’t remember much. It had been about five years since he stopped giving his sermons, after all. He forgot faces. “What exactly happened?”

The police officer blocking his pat pointed at the ground with his chin. Mako turned around, and saw that morning’s newspaper. He picked it up, and noticed that the murder had already made it into the first page. Christ, people work fast around here. He flipped the pages to get to the article.

_”...At 10:00.pm of Thursday a grizzly murder happened at the residence of the Fawkes family. Mandy Fawkes, 48 years old and James Fawkes, 52 years old were found murdered in their home. The bodies were discovered by a concerned neighbor after noticing that the front door of the residence had been left wide open. Police hasn’t been able to confirm cause of death, the bodies had been horribly mutilated and torn apart. The bodies were found on the couple’s bed, still wearing their day clothes. It is speculated that the killer posed the corpses on the bed before leaving._

_“The whereabouts of their son Jamison Fawkes is unknown. Police seek to find him and bring him into questioning, witnesses have reported seeing the family of three enter their home at 9:30 pm, half hour before the murder took place.  
Jamison Fawkes turned 21 years old the day of the murder, he has a small criminal background of theft and arson. If you have seen him, please report to the local authorities.”_

There was more to the article, going deep into detail about Mandy and James Fawkes dayjobs but Mako didn’t read it. He rolled the newspaper and shoved it on his back pocket, and licked his lips. The memory of Fawkes the previous night flashed on his head, the young man sobbing to be let inside.

_“It- it appears at night. It appeared and- and it fuckin’- me parents-”_

Mako bit his lip. Maybe Jamison had killed his parents and then went to hide at Mako’s home. Everything was far too suspicious. But then, why did Mako felt so much dread? It felt like his soul was becoming undone, and he was going to be killed by whatever was out in the woods. Maybe it was him just being too susceptible to supernatural bullshit.   
Whatever it was, this was a problem. The boy had been at his home, and he had his bloodied clothes. Mako already had a shit reputation in town, if they knew he had helped a murderer…

He had left the bag of bloodied clothes at home, in plain view of anybody who entered. Shit. He would have to burn those.   
Without saying a thing, he was making his way to his truck until a familiar voice called out to him.

“Father Rutledge!”

Fucking hell. Mayor Brown.

He took a very deep breath as he turned around to face the woman. Her glasses were pushed up, so close to her eyes her eyelashes touched the lenses. Her hair was greying, and time had taken her toll on her, with wrinkles on her features. But even so, she looked very good, all things considered. She kept being re-elected as the mayor of Suilla, she was good at her job and also no one else really bothered to campaign. 

“Good morning, Doris.”

“Mayor Brown, Father Rutledge.” She sighed. She didn’t look content at all. “I went by your cabin this morning, and you weren’t there, even though your truck was parked right outside.”  
Shit. “Took a walk in the woods. Cleared my mind. Is good for your health.”

“Okay,” She didn’t seem to question it. “I wanted to talk to you about this,” she pointed at the Fawkes house.

“Okay?” He cocked his eyebrow at her.

“This, nothing like this has happened before. Not at this level.” She pointed at the house in question again. “There has been disappearances, sure, but nothing quite like this!”

It was strange, but there had been people who had disappeared. Families that just. Move away. No explanation. But that’s how people were, Mako supposed. People just sometimes left with no words, no goodbyes. It is something he has done a couple of times in his youth. As for the missing people… it’s how things were. People would go missing once in a few years, but again, Mako just supposed that is how things were. People get lost. It’s unfortunate.

“It is tragic.” He said with a deadpan voice. 

“People think it was their kid. He was nowhere to be found, and was seen entering the house half hour before it all happened.”

“I read the article.”

“He worked as a cashier at the mart. His coworkers told me they saw you talking to him, Father Rutledge?” She looked up at him. “Did he say anything about… this?”

“What? No. What would he say?”

She lifted her arms to the sky. “I don’t know, maybe a subtle confession of maybe wanting to murder his parents? Anything? Did he say anything that could help us with this mess, Father?”

Mako looked around, and he noticed that people were staring at him. Mako shook his head, turning back to stare at Brown. “Mentioned it was his birthday, and that he had something planned with his parents. It’s all.”

“Nothing else?”

Mako pressed his tongue behind his front teeth, annoyed. “He said he liked my sermons when I gave them. That’s all. He didn’t confess to me about wanting to kill his entire family.”

Brown rubbed her forehead. “Okay. Thank you, Father. If you know anything about the kid, please tell us. This,” she once again pointed at the bloodied house. “This is not acceptable.”

“Understood. Have a good day.”

He finally got rid of her, as he got into his truck and backed away, leaving to go to his home. From his back view mirror he saw Brown talking to the police officers, and pointing at Mako’s truck as he drove away.   
The possibility of something supernatural happening at his home seemed to vanish, and instead he felt like this was just some kid that killed his parents for funsies and took refuge at his house. Mako felt like an idiot all of sudden, but now he had to cover his tracks. If they knew he had been at his house… it would be his end. 

He sucked air through his teeth, annoyed. God damn, why did he open the fucking door last night?

He parked outside of his home, locking his truck as he walked towards the porch. He could smell something burning, and that’s when he saw the smoke rising from the back of his house.

Panicked he made his way there, only to find Jamison setting fire to a hole, the hole that had all the bloodied things inside. He was wearing Mako’s clothes, but were tied at the bottom- after all, they were just too big for him. He noticed as well that he was wearing a blessed rosemary, and crosses were stuffed on the pockets of the pants too. 

“What the-”

Jamison brought up Mako’s shotgun to point at him, golden eyes wide. Then, he realized it was Mako and lowered it.

“Sorry, mate, thought ye were tha’ cops or somethin’,” 

“What the fuck are you doing?!”

“Bloodied clothes, can’t have ‘em hanging around. Could bury ‘em, but what if someone finds ‘em? This is better.”

Well, Mako was going to do that for sure, but still, what the fuck. 

“Almost done.”

He shook his head and went towards him, taking his right arm and tugging hard.

“Hey! What’s the deal?!”

“What is the deal with YOU?!” Mako practically yelled. 

“Aren’t ya supposed to be nice? Aren’t ya a Father?!”

“Not anymore, you little-” Mako dragged his hand across his face. “You come here last night, covered in blood, spewing bullshit about demons and the like. I went down to your home, saw everything.” he shoved the newspaper on Jamison’s hand. “Ya murderer, you did it, right? You thought you could take shelter here because I used to be a priest?!”

“I-” Jamison took the newspaper, and looked at the front page. The picture of his house, with blood outside was printed in it, and his fingers started to shake. Tears fell down his cheeks as he threw the thing over the fire. “I am no bloody fuckin’ murderer! I didn’t fuckin’ kill me parents!”

“Why should I trust you?! I have to take you to the police station.”

“Mate- no, wait! No!”

Too late, Mako had already picked him up and carried the thin man on his shoulder, strong hand gripping at him. Even if Jamison kicked and wailed, he couldn’t get away from Mako’s grip.

“Father- no! Ya don’t get it! I really didn’t do it! Ya don’t understand! Please ya can’t do it! They will think I killed ‘em! Please!” 

“Not listening.”

“That think ya saw last night when ya slept is real!”

Mako stopped on his tracks, stiff. He recalled the nightmare he had, and placed Jamison on the ground. 

“How d- no, this is a trap, isn’t it? You’re just saying shit and hoping I identify with one.”

“I am not a fucking liar! I didn’t kill me fucking parents! I wouldn’t- I fucking- Ya gotta believe me!” He tugged at the rosary around his neck, fingers pressing against the cross at the end. “Ya felt it too, last night! Ya puked! Ya felt it too, don’t fuckin’ pretend ya didn’t!”

Jamison started crying, jesus. 

“Please, Father. Ya gotta believe me. Please- Mako. Everyone thinks I killed them- They’re my parents, I would never- ya know I wouldn’t roight? Ya know… ya know I wouldn’t kill ‘em... “ He cleaned off the tears off his face, snot spilling from his nose. “Please…”

He hugged Mako as much as he could, but he was so big his arms didn’t reach around. He was sobbing on Mako’s gut, face pressed against his shirt.

“The police is looking for you. If you really didn’t do it, then you need to talk with them so the murdered can be-”

“No! You don’t fuckin- fuck! Ya don’t get it! They’re in it, too! The cops! Everyone!”

“In it? Jamison, what the hell you’re talking about?” He shoved the young man away. This was getting ridiculous.

“They will never find out the culprit! They aren’t gonna- they will blame me!”

“You know who killed your parents?”

Jamison looked around him, and went really close to Mako, having to tiptoe to reach his face, skin pale as he kept tugging on his rosary. 

“It was a demon, Mako.”

“What?”

“I’m cursed. I’m fuckin’ cursed. A demon wants to kill me, Father- please. I need yer help. The demon is after me. It fuckin’ wants me. It killed me parents because of it, I- I need yer help.” He almost begged once again. “Ye are a man of god, ye believe in demons. I know it. Ya can’t say I’m lyin’, ya gotta believe in me!”

“Okay, Okay, calm down. Let’s go inside.” He guided the young man into his home, not before checking the small fire. Everything had burnt into just ashes. Mako buried those ashed with the dirt that Jamison had dug out, and it was enough for him. He slipped inside, and Jamison was already sitting on the livingroom, rolling the crosses on his hands.

“Alright,” he sat down on the living room as well, armchair crouching beneath his weight. “Now, tell me what is going on, if you don’t want me calling the cops.”

“I don’t know much, but,” He scratched the back of his head. “Yesterday was me 21st birthday. In tha mornin’ before going to work, me parents told me that there was a special thing planned tonight for me. Sounds fun, eh! Well, I got home with me parents, it was late. Mom had made me favorite dinner- mac and cheese with bacon on it. As I was eatin’ and drinkin, I feel woozy. Then, I pass out.”

“What, as you ate?”

“Yes! I was eatin’ and all of sudden I just… I dropped. I don’t know why. I was drugged, I guess. Everythin’ just turned dark.” He kept rubbing at the crosses, digits pressed against the smooth surfaces. “Next thing I know, I wake up in the basement. I’m in this… table of sorts. And there is fuckin’ blood everywhere. Like, on the floor, like in a fucking circle like on those stupid terrible movies. A fuckin’ satanic circle. I get off it, still dizzy and high. I get up to me parents room, lookin’ for them and I fucking, I just-”

Jamison takes a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. “I went to their bedroom, since the rest of tha house was empty. It… I saw it. It was this. This Red and black thing. It was like a spider. It hovered over me parent’s bed and… it- it was clawin’ at them. It fucking- it fed off them like they were fuckin’ roadkill. I fuckin’ saw it. And it looked at me. Said somethin’. Made my eyes cry and felt like my ears were bleedin’. It said something and- fuck. It fuckin’ puked me with me parents blood. It looked like a fucked up spider with too many legs, like if ya took a human and made it long enough so its fingers were spider legs but his legs and arms were still there, and face had only holes and no nose or eyes- just holes.

“I fuckin’- I ran away. It chased at me like mad, throwin’ up blood at everythin. I heard it chasin’ me, father. H-have ya heard of that sound fingers do when ya tap the floor with ‘em? It was like that. It was a fuckin’ sound of nails and flesh. It fucking chased after me, screaming, and- and I understood it. It said it wanted me. To come get it. That it was me mum. Me father. That they were waitin’ for me in its belly. It fuckin- it fuckin’ ate me parents. I just- I ran. I knew ya lived in tha’ forest cus we used to sing about the angry priest that lived in tha woods. I just- I knew I had to come ‘ere. It was the only place I knew that was truly holy.”

“You…” Mako was speechless. Trying to put together the bits and pieces. “You didn’t go to the church?”

“I… I don’t know. This is the first place I thought of, after that thing was chasin’ me. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

“Are… are you telling me a demon ate your parents?”

“That’s what I fuckin’ saw! I don’t- I know it sounds fuckin’ dumb, but it’s what I fuckin’ saw! It’s what i saw, it’s…”

What a mess. On one hand, Mako felt like he had no right to judge Jamison but on the other hand, what the fucking hell. It was too fantastical, it was just far too incredible to believe. What the fuck was he supposed to say?

“I-”

There was knocking on his door. Fuck, he hadn’t heard whatever car had pulled over he was too entranced in Jamison’s tale. Before Mako could even get up the knocking became more frantic. Was it Mayor Brown again?

“Mako Rutledge, this is the police! Open up!”

He stood up and already saw Jamison bolt towards the other side of his cabin, and into Mako’s room. Before he could react there was a lot of knocking again.

“I’m on my way! Don’t tear down the door or I’ll sue you for it!” He figured he had to deal with the police first, then the weird-cursed-arsonist later. 

As he opened, the police officers that he had seen at the scene of the crime where there.

“Mako Rutledge, we need to take you to the police station for questioning.”


	3. Sirloin Chop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trip inside of the police officers car was a silent one, the kind of silence that makes your fingers go numb and your throat close up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mako is interrogated
> 
> I AM ON A!!! fucking MOOD man. i love this. so bad. I am having SO MUCH FUN writing this so bad. I'm kinda posting these raw but, i assure you, after this week i'll have a beta reader to help me with these but im just so hype and in a mood and i am having so much FUN!!!!!
> 
> Well, i hope y'all like this one!!!!!!!!!! thank u for reading!!!!

The trip inside of the police officers car was a silent one, the kind of silence that makes your fingers go numb and your throat close up. No matter how much he tried to hide, due to his size everybody that glanced at his direction knew who he was, and that he was being taken away.   
People whispered, pointed and looked with disgust at him. He could have even sworn that the cops took the long way to the precinct, as slowly as they could so more people would look at him.

At least this time he wasn’t covered in blood, like five years ago. 

He crossed his arms in front of his chest, tapping his foot against the floor of the car, impatient. Mako knew that they were trying to humiliate him, but if anything he was annoyed. 

“Getting impatient?” The driver called out. “Thought you would be getting used to this kind of treatment, Father.”

Mako frowned, staring outside at the window of the car as it passed through the busy streets. “I got better shit to do than being paraded around town because you want to question me.”

That shut them up. Luckily for him, they finally made it to the police precinct. Even if he was if only a witness or whatever, they sure did treat him like a criminal, almost shoving him inside. They didn’t seem to be too intimidated by his size, unfortunately. 

Mako was shoved into the questioning room, forced to sit into a chair far too small for his girth. It hurt his ass, but he didn’t want to look bothered at all. He simply crossed his arms on top of the table and waited.

And waited.

And… waited, he guessed.

While the detectives were taking their sweet ass time before they interrogated him, Mako was trying to make up his mind. Jamison confessed to him that he had been attacked by a demon, and that said demon had killed his parents.   
He used to be a priest. He should know about this kind of things, but he had never ever encountered a demon, or knew anybody that had. 

Hell, he was taught how to give sermons, bless places and other random crap he couldn’t remember. Having some demon spawn from hell chase people around and eating them was something way out of his paycheck. And what if Jamison was just lying? Mako wished he could make up his mind on whether he trusted Jamison or not. On one side, it was ridiculous and absolutely sounds like someone who totally killed his parents.

On the other hand, Mako was there. He felt _something_ , something deep in the woods that fed off fear.   
Honestly, he wished he could believe Jamison killed his parents. The alternative was just far too horrific. 

He would have to do research. He had all those books stashed away, religious books. Maybe he could find answers in one, something that matched Jamison’s description of the thing that he saw. 

The door opened harshly, a detective finally stepping inside. He stank of cigarettes, even more than Mako, and booze too.   
The man sat at the other side of the table, in front of Mako and crossed his arms. 

“I am detective Jonathan, Father Rutledge. I will be the one to interrogate you today.”

“I am not a priest anymore.” Mako interjected. He understood a little when common folk called him Father, which he hated, but having the detective call him like that riled him up.

“Hm, that is true. Okay then, mister Rutledge. I was told that you arrived to the crime scene this morning, and stopped by? Why is that so?”

Mako licked his lips. “Was making my way into town to get some supplies, saw the commotion outside. Got curious, got off my truck and asked what happened.”

“Okay, mister Rutledge. Tell me, what do you know about the Fawkes family?”

The older man scratched his skin, deep in thought.

“I didn’t really know them. Can’t recall them.” 

“You don’t know the victims at all? You never talked with them?”

“Maybe in the past, but in the past few years, no. I didn’t know about them.”

“What about their son, Jamison Fawkes? There are witnesses saying you spoke with him the day of the murder.”

“He was a cashier in the mart. Bought my stuff there, talked a bit with him.”

“About what? What did he tell you?”

“Nothing. Said he was excited, it was his birthday. Mentioned he liked my sermons years ago.”

“Is that all? Didn’t he tell you anything else?”

Goddamnit, he already had talked to Brown about this. “He didn’t tell me anything else. That is my entire relationship with him. He just rang my items. That’s all. I don’t know anything about him.”

“Is that truly it, Mako Rutledge? Isn’t there any other bit of information you can give to us?”

Detective Jonathan stared at him with terrible eyes. He felt dread crawl up his stomach, and Mako felt like this place was not safe.

“It’s the truth. I don’t have anything else to say. I don’t know where the boy went.”

“Well, thank you for your time, sir,” he waved his hand, and police officers came into the room to escort Mako out. “Please remember that we might need to year your testimony again, in case it is necessary, so please keep an eye out.” 

“Yeah, yeah. Okay.” He stood up, rolling his shoulders as he made his way to the exit.

“Oh, and, Father Rutledge?”

Mako grimaced in annoyance, turning to face the detective once more.

“Be careful out there.” He grinned as he said it, pearly white teeth showing as he stared at Mako with small brown eyes. 

“Will do, Detective.”

Mako rolled his eyes as soon as he turned around. He was guided through the precinct, and towards the exit.   
Finally outside, he groaned as he remembered that they had taken him in the police car and would have to walk his way home. Pretty far away from where he was. 

He checked his wrist watch. It was pretty late already- he hadn’t realized how long they had kept him inside the questioning room. There were no taxis around, either. He didn’t think anyone would want to give him a ride. So, walking it was, he supposed. 

Mako lit up a cigarette and started his journey back home. 

It was Friday afternoon, which meant there were far more people outside in the afternoon. They did their shopping or simply hung out on the curb, chatting and catching up as they all stared to Mako as he walked past them. They bit their lips, looked away or straight up just pointed and talked about him.

“Isn’t that Father Rutledge?”

This was going to be a long day.

 

Mako was already getting tired of walking, mostly because of all the people staring at him. He didn’t need this, he had far more important things to figure out, like what the fuck to do in regards of Jamison. His mind kept switching from believing Jamison story and thinking it was just rubbish to stop Mako from taking him from the cops. Whatever, he was already elbow deep on this mess since he lied to the detective about Jamison’s whereabouts.

Honestly, he hoped that he would get home, Jamison wasn’t there and he would never see him again. While he felt bad for the boy and the fact that his parents were dead, the possibility that Jamison _was_ the culprit was still incredibly high. He needed to listen to his senses, and stop thinking that “demons” just go out and kill people.

His mind wandered to when he was studying to become a priest.   
Exorcism was a thing. It was something that Mako, honestly, did not believe in. Most priests from younger generations did not believe in it, but then you had Father Brock or Father Maeve, who deeply believed in demonic possession. The priests that performed the exorcisms were always old, the ones that always took those cases. They swore to the sky that people were ill because they were possessed by the devil.

Mako always thought that was pretty damn stupid, honestly. He just… never believed on it, like many people, but if someone asked you if you believed in it, you had to say yes. It was one of those unspoken rules between the priests.

He tried to remember if anyone had ever said they encountered a honest to god physical demon. He couldn’t remember anyone, however. That’s… something that didn’t happen, he supposed. Maybe he was going to be the lucky first.  
Mako hoped that the books he had would help him figure out what was happening.

The sun started to set. It was already getting late, as the lights in the streets turned on, illuminating the way. It was a late afternoon on a Friday, and yet there were barely any people outside. Mako didn’t think much of it- it was Fall, so it was starting to get pretty cold outside. He took a deep breath of his cigarette once more, and puffed out the smoke, rolling the little cigarette on his thick fat fingers. He didn’t really believe in demons, either, before all of this. Maybe he was a pretty bad priest then, if he didn’t believe in the cliche evil everyone believed in. 

He took another huff off the cigarette. Well, honestly, he was a pretty shitty priest. He was still technically one and the church still paid him, but still. When he got to Suilla, he was doing okay. His sermons were entertaining, and fun. People liked him. They confessed to him and generally, he was a good priest. Normal, if anything. He even enjoyed it, the quaint town, the closeness of everybody in it was something Mako liked. It made him feel at home.

But then everything went to fucking shit. 

Sighing, he dropped his cigarette on the curb, stepping on it. He immediately got another one out and light it; normally he wouldn’t smoke so much but it had been a stressful day. The sun had already set, the street was engulfed with darkness. The yellow light of the light poles lightened up the way, so Mako kept moving forward. An hour and half of walking and he would be home, hopefully. 

_”Father?”_

He felt his blood run cold. His body went very still as he stopped in his tracks, a chill going down his spine. Mako knew that voice.

_”Father? I’m scared”_

He was passing an alley, and the voice was coming from there. Beads of sweat rolled down the back of his neck, making him shiver. 

_”Father?”_

Yeah fuck that. He walked past the alley like he hadn’t heard anything. You couldn’t fucking pay him to investigate.   
He felt his hands shake as he made his way. He heard the sound of something… flesh-y move, following at him. It sounded like something biological, meaty, slithering and pulsating. 

_”Father? Father, please, help me,”_

It was a young woman’s voice.

It was-

Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck. 

Mako broke into a sprint, cigarette falling into the ground. He didn’t even look back. He didn’t even fucking _dare_ look back.   
He was running as fast as he could with his weight, his gut uncomfortably jumping up and down as he tried to get away from the moaning. His lungs started to burn as he pushed on, feet hurting and throat itching. The corner of his eyes started to get dark, he didn’t notice the part of the curb that had a deep hole in it, signs put around it as it was being repaired. Fuck- without thinking he made a turn to the left towards an alley, but before he realized the terrible mistake he made he came face to face with a brick wall, taller than him. Too steep to climb.

“Fuck- fuck!”

_”Father?”_

Against his better judgement he turned around. 

It was not a… person. It was a pulsating thing. It looked like a very thin figure had been wrapped in a dark blanket very tightly, knots and folds being its skin. The head sucked through the layer of “skin”, but there were no holes, as if a face was covered through the layer of rotten, moldy meaty skin. It had seizures, moved erratically. It sputtered, leaking something black and thick, dropping it all over the floor. It rose, twisted body being supported by thin, naked legs, pale and veiny, oily and bloody.   
It was far taller than Mako, it’s long body far too big to be kept upright. It twisted too much, hunching with its head hanging at Mako’s eye level. It was as if someone’s face had been covered with a towel and it tried to speak, breath and open its eyes, instead it was a layer of putrid skin and meat, bubbling as the mouth underneath attempted to talk.

_”Father?”_

It started to grow long, thin arms. Like those of a child but elongated, holes instead of nails. They dripped as well, shaking. The hands reached over to Mako in an attempt to touch him.

_”It’s me, Amy”_

The next thing Mako knew was that he somehow had climbed the wall to the other side. However he did it, his fingertips were bleeding and his face hurt from crashing against the floor as he landed. He stood up and ran as fast as it was humanly possible, the screeching of a young girl following him, metallic sounds tapping against the wall like it was some sort of metallic spider. 

_”Father? Father?”_

Fuck this. Oh, fuck this.

He didn’t even know where he was running to. Anyplace, anywhere. The streets were empty as the creatured followed him, calling out to him. He almost fucking shit himself he was so terrified. He had never been so fucking scared his entire life. He had been running so fast Mako’s vision was starting to cloud.   
He saw at the edge of his vision the church. The memory of Jamison telling Mako that he needed to get into his house because it was blessed flashed in his mind. He had to get into the church. 

Mako used the last of his energy to run as fast as he could. At this hour, the church was closed, but back when he practiced as a priest it would stay open in case any soul needed help. Well, now he was the one in need for help.

He was about to vomit until he finally, finally made it into the front door. He didn’t even stop as he crashed against the wooden door- it was unlocked, but even if it hadn’t Mako threw himself so hard against it he would have probably destroyed it anyways. He crashed inside, crawling up to his feet and turning back just to see the creature stop right outside the door.

 _”Father? Father?”_ it cooed, twisting it head and looking at Mako as it danced and twitched. Its limbs cracked and popped, clawing at the doors and walls outside and screeching, wailing in a high pitched noise that made Mako dizzy. 

Mako stood up, and closed the door. 

He still heard it outside, calling for him, using Amy’s voice. It called for him, begged him, but he could hear the tapping of fingers on the doors, could see its moldy face pressing against the glass of the window, looking at Mako, making wet noises as it just stared down at him, leaving a patch of black gunk in the glass it touched. It cried like a child, but also panted and moaned like an animal, staring at Mako like he was a mouse.

Then it started violently slamming itself into the window, screeching. Amy’s voice was replaced by a guttural one, wet, as if a bunch of meat was trying to speak. It kept slamming against the window, but the window didn’t even move even if the thing put all its strength into it. 

_”COME OUT YOU PIG COME OUT YOU PIECE OF SHIT COME OUT COME OUT COME OUT COME OUT YOU FUCKING ANIMAL COME OUT GET OUT GET HERE YOU BREEDING PEST YOU INSECT I WILL TEAR YOU APART LIMB BY LIMB I WILL FEAST ON YOUR GUTS I WILL TEAR YOU APART I WILL LICK YOUR BONES WILL CRAWL UP YOUR STOMACH I WILL DESTROY YOU FROM THE INSIDE OUT COME OUT GIVE HIM TO US GIVE HIM TO US GIVE HIM TO US GIVE HIM TO US GIVE HIM TO US”_

Mako was paralyzed as he stared at the thing, until it screamed one final time and just stopped. Everything went quiet and Mako felt like his soul returned to his body. 

But he wasn’t going to leave. He wasn’t a fucking idiot. He grabbed one of the pews and dragged it towards the wall, stepped on it and looked out of the tall window where the thing was peeking through.

The thing leaped at him and crashed against the wall. The sudden surprise made Mako fall into the pew, hurting his back as he slammed against the edge of the seat. He opened his eyes and stared at the thing, who was pounding once again with no effect.

_”GIVE HIM TO US GIVE HIM TO US GIVE HIM TO US PRIEST PIG PIECE OF MEAT SHIT GIVE HIM TO US”_

It curled around the window like a snake and stared at Mako. The old man stood up, one hand on his hurting back and didn’t lose eye contact with him. Until he blinked- and suddenly the thing was gone.  
It still was probably waiting outside, though. Mako wasn’t going to risk it. He would have to spend the night in the church. 

He looked at his wristwatch. 8:00 pm. The sun rose at six. Fuck. 

Mako sat on the pew, catching his breath.

Then he puked.

Everything was far too overwhelming. What the fuck. What the flying fuck. That was a fucking demon, and it tried to kill him. And it spoke in Amy’s voice.

Amy…

Holy shit.  
Holy _shit_.

Jamison was right. There is a fucking demon out there killing people, speaking with the voices of the deceased. Jesus Christ. He rather Jamison be the one that killed his parents and not have to deal with this. 

He was on the verge of a panic attack, he could feel it. He grabbed one of his cigarettes with shaking fingers, they were shaking so much he dropped it. It fell into the pool of puke at his feet. Fuck. He picked another one, he light it and took a deep puff out of it, but it didn’t calm his nerves at all.

Jesus fucking christ. 

He was sweating like a pig. He placed a hand on his forehead and he was absolutely drenched. His body was hurting with exhaustion, adrenaline washing off. He really needed to calm down, but it was almost impossible considering the circumstances.

Okay. Okay. One thing at a time.

Jamison was right. There was some kind of demon thing let loose. That thing killed his parents, and somehow knew about Mako, and Amy. It tried to kill him. So far that was true.   
God, he couldn’t think straight. 

He needed to focus. 

After his breathing went back to normal, he looked up to stare at his surroundings.   
The lights inside the church were on, giving him some good illumination. There was no one else inside, however.

Ever since Mako stopped being the town’s priest, another man had been sent. Father Monroe, who would be in charge of the church. Mako didn’t know much about the man, he was older than him and was very cold. As far as he knew, people didn’t even really try to approach Father Monroe for anything he was so disconnected from everything. 

After the incident, Mako only had met him a couple of times. The man didn’t even try to speak to Mako about why he was being replaced- it was obvious. The townspeople hated him. However, technically nothing was Mako’s fault, so he still remained a priest and would get paid even if he didn’t give any sermon.

He was a special situation, so to speak. 

Even so, shouldn’t Father Monroe be there? It was still technically early, and if the Father wasn’t there, there should be at least a helper or even a guard keeping watch, but the place was pretty empty.   
He stood up, and walked through it. It had been the first time in years since he stepped inside the building. It was basically the same as before, but it felt… different. Something he couldn’t place his finger on. 

After walking through the church, through the pews and all the rooms he had access to, there didn’t seem to be anybody in it. That was… extremely weird. But not as weird and fucked up as what just had happened. 

He knew the church had a religious library. He figured he could find something there, but the door leading to it was locked. He could have brought the door down, but after talking to the cops that same day he figured just destroying property in a church wouldn’t be a good idea. 

So, what was he going to do now? For sure, he would stay inside the church until morning came. If Jamison was correct, then the thing would go away in the morning. “Only comes out at night”, etcetera. 

Also he had seen a goddamned fucking demon. No one would believe him or Jamison. He was already picturing it- disgraced priest and a murder suspect saying how two people were murdered by a demon. Yeah, that was not going to work.

Father Monroe wasn’t particularly loved, but maybe he could help. They needed to contact the Higher Clergy, someone. Mako wasn’t trusted in town, but maybe Father Monroe could help- he also was older and far more experienced than Mako. Maybe even one of those types to believe demons and exorcisms are real.

For now, it was his only hope. However he would have to wait until morning.   
He grabbed a mop that was at one side and cleaned up his puke. It was the least he could do. Mako laid down in one of the pews, and finally all the exhaustion got over him. Soon enough, he fell asleep, his tired body finally giving in. 

The last thing he thought of as he drifted off was of Jamison. Hopefully the boy was still in his cabin.

Hopefully.

 

\---

 

In his dreams

She waited for him. Laid on the floor. Her dark hair was spilled on the ground, like a pool of blood. She panted, gasped, stared at him in horror, hoping to find comfort. Hoping for him to help her. Putting her last shred of hope on him.

Please

Please

Mako stared at the abyss, awaiting for something. 

But nothing stared back.

 

The creaking of the door woke him up. He woke up startled once again, and for few seconds it terrified Mako. But he immediately realized it was morning already. The creature was gone. 

“Father Monroe?” Mako asked as he stood up, cracking his sore back and going towards the door. “I need to talk to-”

It wasn’t Father Monroe. It was one of his assistants, a red haired boy. He looked with flushed cheeks at Mako, not expecting him to be there at all, and slightly terrified. 

“U-um-”

“Do you know where Father Monroe is?”

“H-he isn't, s-sir. Won’t be here today, Sir. He is out of town, sir.”

Goddamnit. “When will he be back?”

“T-tomorrow, sir.”

“Okay, then. I’ll be here tomorrow.” Without awaiting for an answer, he left the church.

Fuck. Okay, so, that would be one day wasted. With weird demons running around that was a day too many, but there wasn’t much he could do. He could probably find something in his own library, something that could help them with this predicament. 

He still had to walk home. He checked at his wristwatch: 7 a.m. At least it was very early. 

Mako sighed and started to walk home. He looked at where the creature had bled through, but all the gunk and blood was gone. Hmm.

While he walked through the streets, something remained in his mind.

_”GIVE HIM TO US”_

Mako licked his lips. 

Apparently, not only the police was searching for Jamison.


	4. Cubed Steak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I am awaiting, Priest.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mako finally makes it home. 
> 
> Hello!!! This new chapter is mostly talking and more action. just setting up what will happen next, ya get?? I hope you guys like it too!!!!
> 
> This is my last day of vacation and next week i'll return to work, so unfortunately! this will be the last Chapter for a bit. I will add it to my roster of Updates, but we will see!! also after this i will use a beta reader to check on the chapters before i actually just post them raw.
> 
> I hope y'all like it!!! thank you for reading!! 
> 
> BTW, if you havent noticed, the chapters are named after cuts of pork !

Birds chirped outside, singing early in the morning. The sun passed through the windows, illuminating the inside of the church. The chatter of people was a pleasant background noise as they made their way outside.

They left in a pleasant mood, smiles spread on their faces having enjoyed Father’s Rutledge sermon, like they always do.

Mako hummed to himself as he watched them all leave, a smile on his face as well. Content, he went to his office when the last of the people left.  
Sitting on his chair he started checking over letters and documents, the funds and the events coming up.

It’s funny, he never thought he would enjoy being an actual priest so much. The town was quiet and nice, the people were kind to him. It was far better than he expected it to ever be. 

“Father Rutledge, I’m off!” His assistant said, a teenage boy. “See you on Monday!”

“Goodbye, Johnny. See you tomorrow.”

Johnny waved at him from the office’s door, and then left. He heard his light footsteps getting further away, and then he was alone, his only company the books in his office and the birds singing. Rutledge took a deep breath, smiling to himself just before he went back to work with his documents.

He signed papers, checked over the budgets, requests, letters from the clergy. The radio next to him played classical tunes as he worked, and the morning went by pretty fast. He kept his mind busy, thinking about Doris Brown request to perhaps make an event to reach more to the youth of the town. Parents wondered if they could form a choir in the church, and have their children join. The yearly bake sale was coming up pretty soon, too. He would have to put up flyers, recruit mothers to bake.

It was very unlike his previous life, as a youth. But that was good. It was a pleasant change. It was something he never really expected to have. 

Mako started to draw a mock design for the bake sale, something he would transplant to the computer later and get an actual nice neat poster. He drew different kind of pastries on the paper, until there was a knock on the door, so low and gentle he barely even registered it.

When he looked up he saw a woman at the entrance of his office. Her hair was long and dry, she looked tired. Just absolutely exhausted. He didn’t recall seeing her that morning- he would recall seeing a woman so tired and so miserable looking in his sermon.

“Father Rutledge?”

“Good morning, is there anything you need?” He asked, slightly concerned. The woman’s eyes darted around, thin fingers playing with the fabric of her long skirt. 

“Father I…” She gulped. “I need your help with something. Could I speak with you?”

“Of course, of course. Come, sit down, Mrs…”

“Mason. Alice Mason.” She sat down in the chair at the other side of his desk, in front of him. Mako had put everything away, putting his arms on the desk, palms touching each other trying to look as friendly as possible, something difficult due to his appearance. 

“Now, what troubles you?”

The woman looked extremely on edge, picking at the skin on her arms. She wouldn’t look at Mako in the eyes, just staring at the floor, the desk, the walls, herself- but he wouldn’t actually look at him. She started to bite her fingernails, skin shiny from the sweat. 

“Father, it’s- it’s my daughter,” she was in the verge of tears as she stared up at Mako. 

“Father, please, help my Amy.”

 

\---

 

The trek back home had been annoying and long. He didn’t eat the previous day, which added another layer of miserable. Stupidly enough Mako forgot his wallet when the police officers took him into custody, which meant he couldn’t even buy a slice of pizza or anything at the store. 

The trail that lead to his house in the woods was long, trees surrounding the area. He used to believe this place was safe and comfortable, but considering what had happened with Jamison and the demon, Mako just didn’t want to be there at all. Even so, it seemed the safest places in town right now were the church and his own home. Thank God he had the sense to bless it when he moved.

Finally, finally he arrived home. His truck was still there, undisturbed. When he approached the porch he opened the door and stepped inside.  
The living room had blankets and pillows thrown around, along with some books on the floor and candles.  
There didn’t seem to be any sign of forced entrance, and none of his things seemed to be stolen, so it probably was just Jamison.

Where was he anyways? 

He walked through his house, hearing a soft noise coming from his bathroom. Rolling his eyes, he opened the door.  
The bathroom looked pretty immaculate. He went over to the tub and pulled away the shower curtain, revealing the tub.

The cannon of a shotgun pressed against his belly. Jamison laid inside the bathtub, still with crosses around him as he stared at Mako. His eyes went wide when he realized he had, again, pointed a gun at him.

“I’m sorry mate, fuck, fuck-” he took the gun back, slightly horrified. “I could have killed ya-”

“Gun safety is on.” Mako pointed out nonchalantly. 

“What?” Jamison examined the shotgun closely. The boy probably had never used those kind of guns, he didn’t know how they worked. He couldn’t even aim it right with only one hand. 

“Come on,” He took the shotgun away, and placed it across the toilet water tank. “What are you doing here?”

“I don’t- I didn’t want to sleep in tha’ living room. What if somethin’... peeked inside? But I didn’t wanna sleep in yer bed. I mean, it’s yer bed! That’s- private and shit! So, I er, slept in the bathtub.”

The bathtub was big, it was necessary due to Mako’s fat. Which helped the young man not being crammed in a small space- he actually managed to make a good bed for himself in there. 

“Ya were out all day and all night. I thought…” he scratched the back of his blond head. “I dunno. I thought maybe police took ya into custody and blamed ya but…. I didn’t- I wasn’t sure what to do. Thought if ya hadn’t come home today I would have definitely searched for ya, mate! Totally! I would have gotten all the crosses and-”

“Jamison,” He extended his hand to help him out. “We need to talk.”

That quieted him right up. Carefully, he took his hand and stepped outside of the the tub. “Come on, I’ll make tea.”

They went to the living room, Jamison sat on the couch as Mako went to boil some water on the kettle. He could hear the young man fidgeting and squirming. He probably was still on edge, for very good reasons. 

“Sorry about the crosses and yer house, mate. I got spooked at night.”

“Did anything come?”

“No, no. Not a sound, nothin’. But still got freaked out.”

No wonder. Mako grabbed two cups of tea, placing the lemon tea bag in them and filling them up with water.  
He carried them to the other room, the cups being comically small on his big hands. He gave one cup to Jamison, and took the other one for himself.

The blond drank it a little too fast, burning the tip of his tongue a little and making faces. Mako was more careful, simply drinking slowly. 

“Hey, so,” Jamison placed his cup on the coffee table, his leg bouncing up and down and fingers fidgeting with his shirt. “They took ya into custody? What did… they asked ye?”

“They saw me talk to you on the store the other day. Asked me if you told me anything”

“Tell you anythin’? Like what?”

Mako shrugged. “Maybe they thought you would confess to me before doing the crime-”

“I didn’t fuckin’ killed me parents!” He exploded, standing up and getting defensive.

“I know. I believe you.”

Jamison golden eyes went wide, almost in doubt. He stared at Mako for a long time, cocking his head. 

“Ya… believe in me?”

“I… think I saw a demon, too.”

Mako then proceeded to explain to Jamison what had happened the previous day. How he had been interrogated, that he had been released but had to walk home. Recalled the demon that called out to him, with voices of the deceased and how it chased him into the church, and he had to stay there until that morning.  
He, of course, didn’t reveal the fact that the thing called itself Amy, or spoke on her voice. There was no need for that at the moment. Jamison didn’t need to know. 

While he explained, Jamison stared at him with big, terrified eyes. He chewed on his lower lip, not breaking eye contact with Mako. He tapped his fingers on his stump, and remained very quiet after Mako was done talking.

“Do you understand what I said, Jamison? I saw it, too. It attacked me, it tried to kill me.”

“Holy shit.” He rubbed his forehead, looking down at his feet. “Holy shit! Ahaha, this is- this is just… this is incredible, mate! This is a fucking nightmare! Why is this happening?!”

“I… I don’t know.” He really didn’t. He wished he could understand just what was going on, but everything drew a blank. 

“What are we gonna do? No one is gonna believe us. They- they think I killed me parents. They gonna say we are insane.”

“I tried to speak with Father Monroe today, but he is out of town. He may know how to help.”

“Ya used to be a priest! How come ya don’t know?! Isn’t this yer job?!”

“They didn’t teach us how to get rid of demons. This is… this is old stuff. Demonic stuff. We were only told how to give sermons, bless places- this is different.” 

“Ya think Father Monroe can help?”

Mako sighed. “Hopefully. We need more help, we also need to contact the clergy. He can do it from his office. Be able to figure out what is going on here.” Mako covered his mouth with a big palm. “There must be a way we can kill it, or something.”

“This is fucking- this is fucking nuts, This is goddamn… this is a nightmare, mate.”

He let Jamison curse, and then something occurred to Mako, something Jamison had mentioned before.

“Jamison,” this caught the young man’s attention, and he looked at Mako with a lot of intensity. “You mentioned, the night of your parents murder- you woke up on a table, and there was a satanic circle under it?”

“Y...yes. It was like… somethin’ out of a fuckin’ horror movie.”

Nothing really clicked. Maybe if he did start to think like those ridiculous movies he watched, things would make more sense.  
It was a ridiculous notion, but Mako attempted it. So far unbelievable bullshit had happened to him. 

If Jamison woke up on a table with a satanic like circle underneath, then he probably was going to be used to summon a demon. Open a portal in hell. Something like that.

And yet Jamison was alive. 

He knew of rituals, but mostly just teenagers who thought they were edgy and drew a Saint Peter’s cross and expected demons to come jumping, nothing like… this. 

“I think you were going to be a sacrifice.”

“...What?”

“Jamison, you woke up on top of a table, with circles underneath it. And now, there is a demon seeking you. When I was chased around, the… thing told me to give you to it.”

“What?! I-it did?!”

“It said… ‘Give him to us’. They know you’re with me. They want you, Jamison.” God, this sounded so ridiculous. “I believe you were supposed to be the sacrifice, but something went wrong. You survived, and now it haunts you.”

“But why?! Why me?! I-I’m not in a cult! I don’t know anyone who is! I never did anythin- I go to church! I made some shitty things but-but nothin’ to kill me!”

“Jamison, are you-”

“I am not a fuckin’ virgin!”

“No, not that!” Mako rolled his eyes. “Are you sure no one you know is part of a cult? You haven’t been urged to join anything?”

“No! I am not even offered free drugs or anything, I was living a pretty normal life until the other day!” 

“Who do you think was performing the sacrifice?”

“I don’t- I don’t know, I don’t know!” Jamison was starting to freak out, panicking, holding his head with his hand and almost rocking back and forth. The poor boy seemed to be on the verge of losing his mind. “It was only me and me parents! I don’t know who could have done it!”

Mako had the macabre realization that maybe, most likely it was his parents. He was eating with them when he passed out. His mom cooked. There was no one else but his parents in the house. His parents were the ones murdered by the demon.

His parents tried to sacrifice Jamison.

He, of course, didn’t say this. Jamison was in a panicked state, it wouldn’t help him to tell him his parents tried to sacrifice him to a damn demon.  
Mako stood up, sitting next to Jamison. He needed to calm him down. He placed a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to help him. Jamison stopped, and looked at him. 

“I won’t let them get you.”

“It tried to kill ya! It- it wants me. Ya aren’t…?”

“No, I won’t let that thing kill you, Jamison. I couldn’t.”

Jamison seemed to calm down, and rocked a little bit in place. “What… what are we gonna do?”

“I blessed this place. Whatever those things are, they won’t enter this place. Tomorrow Father Monroe comes back- I’ll go speak to him about the situation. He can help us fight this thing.”

“Thank you, Father.”

“Just… call me Mako. I’m not a Father anymore.”

“Then why are ye helping me? Ya… ya could just, give me to them, and then that would be it for ye.”

Well. He could. He could give the excuse that he was just far too tangled up in the mess, but honestly Mako could just give them Jamison, and his life would go back to normal. He had no connection with the young man. But- he wouldn’t do that. He wasn’t a monster. 

“I don’t need to be a father to not be a decent human being.” He answered truthfully. “I’m not going to give you away to some demon just because I’m not a priest anymore.”

“Thank ye, Mako.” 

Jamison turned around on his seat and hugged Mako real close, and started to cry. Mako was about to push him off, but honestly the poor guy had a lot of bullshit happen to him, so he let him let it out for a little. He didn’t really hug him back, just let Jamison press his wet face against Mako’s chest as he cried into Mako’s shirt.

“I’m… I’m sorry,” he apologized as he stopped the hug, drying his tears with his one hand. “I’ll help ya clean up…”

“I’ll make dinner. We will stay inside all day and night, until tomorrow morning.” He got up, making his way to the kitchen. “You will stay here. This place is safe. Even if it isn’t dark out- you shouldn’t even risk going out.”

“Yeah, ya don’t gotta tell me that twice.”

Mako was still feeling pretty stressed out, but hopefully cooking would help him feel better. He would have to cook for two.  
Well, three. He always ate a lot, anyways.

Opening the fridge, he remembered he bought pizza the other day and didn't finish it. Well, there were only like two slices left, not enough for the two of them. 

“Did you eat the pizza?”

“O-oh, yeah mate, sorry. I was hungry but didn’t want to go out because, well, ya know. Being hunted and all!”

“Don’t worry about it.” He looked at his fridge. He had some good Mutton steaks, he was hoping to use them for a special occasion, but he has been saying that for weeks. He should use them now, otherwise they’ll spoil. 

Well, he could make a quick casserole out of it. He grabbed the steaks, carrots, onions, and garlic. He didn’t have tomato paste, so he grabbed some big tomatoes as well. 

“You ever had mutton?” He called out, while he preheated the oven and started to pour oil on a large pan with the steaks. 

“What’s that?” Jamison called out from the other room.

“It’s… like sheep.” As the meat was browning he grabbed the tomatoes, cleaning them off. After, he cut them in quarters before putting them in his blender, adding a clove of garlic, some salt and blended away to make the paste. “You ever had sheep?”

“I don’t… think so! I can’t remember. Maybe?”

Mako chuckled. After blending for a bit, the tomato paste was ready. The steaks weren’t ready yet though, so he continued with chopping the onions and the carrots. If he remembered, the recipe also needed like actual wine, but he only had cheap beer.  
Once the steaks were fully browned, Mako added his tomato paste in it, and waited for it to cook. 

Meanwhile he added chicken stock to the steak pan, thyme and some bay leaf in a pan. Putting it on the oven. Normally the recipe said it should cook for about some hours, but honestly Mako was too impatient. He increased the temperature, and the steaks were pretty much cooked on the pan anyways, so he wasn’t worrying about it being raw. 

While that was in the oven, Mako fried the garlic, carrots and onions in some oil for a bit, until they were crispy and good.  
He turned to look at Jamison, who was picking up the mess he had made in the living room. 

“Did anything strange happened while I wasn’t here?” Mako hated the fact that he had to come back to the harsh reality of the situation, but it also was necessary. He wished he could just forget about everything, but, alas…

“Didn’t hear a thing. Nothin’. Couldn’t feel anything, either. Was pretty quiet. Didn’t check outside the windows or anythin’, in case it was lurking outside.”

“Before your birthday, have your parents acted… strange? Has anyone acted strange?”

“Well,” Jamison scratched as his chin. “Me mom was very, y’know, all over me. Affectionate and stuff. But she always gets like that when me birthday is comin’! Me dad… he acted normal? I didn’t see anythin’ different.”

“Has…” Mako was tempted to reveal Jamison’s parents real intentions, but stopped himself. “Has anybody else- neighbors, friends, something acted strange?”

“I don’t… know. Mate, ya know me. I ain’t really a model citizen. People didn’t really talk to me, ya know? Too weird, if ya get what I’m saying.”

He recalled reading on the newspaper that Jamison had been arrested a couple of times. Well, if he was going to try to save Jamison from being eaten by demons, then he should probably know more about the boy. 

“You aren’t in school? You don’t have any weird teachers hanging around, telling you strange things?” He was twenty one, right? There was a small community college at the other side of town.

“Nah mate- I got kicked out. After I got arrested. How dumb, heh?”

Mako didn’t comment on that. He took the pan with the vegetables, opening the oven and adding it to the pot with the mutton steaks. He closed the oven once more, the oven door making a little click. He only needed to wait. His mind started to race, trying to think of every little possibility. 

“Normally this isn’t a one man thing. Summoning demons.” The mutton’s smell was starting to leak through the kitchen, it made Mako’s stomach growl, but he didn’t even realize it. “It- it is done by cults, and groups of people. Are you sure you were never approached by anybody?”

“No! I would fuckin’ know if a fucking cult tried to kidnap me.”

It was such a weird thing to think of, a cult in the small town. He tried to remember if he had seen any suspicious activity in the past when he was a father, but nothing as alarming as a fucking cult. Maybe Father Monroe knew more about it? After he stopped being the town’s priest, Mako got very out of touch with the town and what happened in it. Maybe there was a damn cult, and he hadn’t noticed.

He would have asked Jamison about it, but if he didn’t even know why Mako stopped being the priest, then he probably wasn’t really aware of his surroundings. 

“Were your family very religious?”

“Um… well, we went to church? We don’t really got crosses or anythin’ at home, though. Just went to church, prayed before eatin’, ya know. Normal shit. Didn’t go to church religiously though, just like, sometimes went sometimes didn’t. Mom or Dad didn’t really talk to me about that? I'm guessin they wanted me to choose for meself, I guess.”

“Hm... “ Maybe after eating he could think of more ideas. He pulled out the pan out of the oven, grabbing two plates. 

He poured two servings of the casserole on the bowls, grabbing them and going over to the dining table.

“Dinner’s ready.”

Jamison went over, sitting down and looking at his plate. “Is this the mutt?”

“Mutton. And yes.”

“Thanks, Mako.” He grabbed the spoon, and started to eat. His face went wide in surprise at the taste. “This is fuckin’ apples, man! Wow!”

He basically ate like a child, fast and messy. He wasn’t sure if he normally ate like this or if it was just the circumstances. Mako started to eat, and honestly it was hard to not eat without boundaries he was so hungry.  
The carrots were soft, the meat was delicious and the paste was exquisite. Or maybe it was because he hadn’t eaten the previous day. Whatever. It tasted fucking good. 

“Can’t ya, like, exorcise the demon?” Jamison asked, mouthfuls of food on his mouth, some of the broth spilling out of his chin. 

“Don’t know how.”

“Ya used to be a priest and ye don’t know how to exorcise things?”

“It’s not like we have a class on exorcism." Actually, there is. It's like, a whole thing, with certification and all, but Mako didn't really believe in it or in demonic possessions, so he never took it. Oh, how wrong was he. He wasn't going to tell that to Jamison, though. "I just don’t know how to. Maybe Father Monroe does.”

“Or maybe he can bring someone who does! That should do it, right? Send that motherfucker back to fucking hell.”

“Hmm, eat.”

They basically ate in silence- kind of. Jamison kept making weird noises and sounds as he ate. He kept praising Mako and his cooking abilities, which he wasn’t going to lie felt good. 

“How are you feeling? You were very bruised when you first arrived.” Mako broke the silence as he continued to eat, feeling his belly full of warmth with the hot meal. 

“I’m feeling great. Thank ye for checking on me!”

“You were covered in blood. I thought some of it was yours.”

“Nah, none of mine.”

Jamison finished eating, and he stared at his empty bowl. He went very still and quiet, just staring. It was… unnerving.

“Are you okay?”

“No- this is. None of this is okay, mate, what the fuck? My parents died, and they’re pinning the blame on me! Someone tried to sacrifice me to a demon! The thing is trying to kill me, I am not fucking okay! What the fuck am I supposed to do?!”

He covered his face with his hand while he cried. Mako… wasn’t sure what to do. He wasn’t a comforting man. It had been long ago since that, and honestly, he didn’t know what to say about _that_. He was coping with everything himself, too. 

“I’m so sorry, Jamison. I don’t know what to say.” He took a deep breath. “We will figure this out together, okay? As long as you stay here, you’ll be fine.”

“Okay…” Jamison seemed to calm down a little, but to be fair the young man had all right to be upset. “Y’know, ya mentioned if I saw somethin’ weird…”

He still wasn’t looking at Mako, just staring at the table. “I didn’t notice it- but people… some people were just starin’ at me? Like normally people stare, y’know,” he pointed at his stump. “But this time it felt different?”

“Who stared at you?”

“Idunno- I didn’t pay attention who did- but like. It felt… different, ya know? Like they knew something. Hah, this is stupid. I guess I’m on edge. Probably just a coincidence?”

“Mmm.” 

They finished eating, and Jamison helped Mako clean up the dishes. It was still pretty early, but Mako wasn’t really in the mood of going out. It would be an hour or so before the sun started to set. 

“Why do ya think they want me?” Jamison said, as he sat on the couch, picking at his fingers with his teeth. 

“You were meant to be the sacrifice. For some reason, you survived, so they probably still want you.”

“But, why me? Why did they want to sacrifice me? I don’t look like a sacrifice! Ya know, a quite virgin girl… that’s what they sacrifice, right?”

“Well, guess not.”

Mako sat down on the other couch, taking a cigarette, lighting it and taking a breath out of it. So far nothing weird had happened, which was fine with him. Honestly, he was probably going to call it a night soon. Didn’t really sleep well at the church. 

“We should close the windows,” Mako pointed out. “Last night at church, one peeked through one of the windows. Don’t want no fucker to see inside my house.”

“You don’t… think they can break the window, right?”

“Don’t think so. I don’t think they can do any physical harm to the building that has been blessed. They shouldn’t be able to even get inside.”

“Okay…”

With the help of Jamison, Mako covered the windows with newspaper, taping them against the glass and making thick layers so nothing could see inside. Unfortunately, this meant they couldn’t see inside either, but he felt that was a small price to pay. It didn’t sit well with him to have some kind of demon to look inside his home.

They didn’t spoke much about that, at least nothing important. Jamison talked about the job he had, and how he used to work in storage at the mart before he had been “promoted” as a cashier earlier that week. He said how the coworkers were a bit wary about him, but that probably was because he had been arrested and he was missing an arm. Nothing too out of the ordinary, he hoped.

By the time they had finished, it was already getting late. He was pretty exhausted and hoped Jamison wouldn’t have an issue with him going to sleep.

“Ye are tired already? It’s only like, seven!”

“It’s 8 p.m. Also, you didn’t have to sleep on a wooden pew with half your ass hanging on the air.”

Jamison snorted. “Roight… Okay. Don’t ye have like, a television or something?”

“No I… um…” Mako remembered. He did have a television. He never really watched it, so he unhooked it and put it away in the closet. He went over, took it and placed the screen on the coffee table. He hooked it to the wall outlet and the screen came to life with white noise. 

“Hold on,” He hooked a small antenna, and there was an image on the screen. It was a cartoon, some farm animals or whatever. “It only has local, and the signal here is kind of bad. But you can watch it if you want.”

“Alright, thanks!” The young blond basically plopped himself on the couch. 

“You don’t mind sleeping here, on the couch?”

“Nah- I feel better with the windows covered. Reminds me of the camps me mom used to send me as a tike.”

“Okay, Mako grabbed the pillows and blankets that Jamison had put away before, and gave them to him. “If you want more food, you can get it. If you need anything, come wake me up, okay?”

“Thank ye, Mako.” He looked up, and smiled a toothy, lopsided grin. “Thank ya for everything.”

“Is okay,” Mako waved as he walked away. “Night”

“Goodnight!”

Mako went to his room, sighing as he undressed himself. He just realized he hadn’t showered either. Fuck. He could do that tomorrow, though. He was far too exhausted he was pretty sure if he took a shower he would just fall asleep on the tub. 

He normally slept on his underwear only, but it felt weird to do that with Jamison on the other room. He took an old t-shirt and put it on, along with some old pair of shorts he needed to replace. Comfortable and warm. Good enough.

Without thinking much else, he crawled into his bed. He could hear the sounds of the television set on the living room, but it actually lulled him. Knowing there was someone else in the cabin felt weird, but ultimately, Mako couldn’t deny he felt safe.

His warm soft bed was far too delicious to his sore body, and soon enough he fell asleep.

 

\---

 

His body felt stiff, far too stiff. He laid in the middle of the bed, sheets off him. It was cold and yet he felt his sweat roll of his body, he tried to move but Mako’s body wouldn’t budge. He was completely paralyzed, he could only move his eyes. 

As he awoke he saw his window above his bed, on the ceiling. He had forgotten about it.  
It was uncovered, and something was pressing against it. 

Something with hair, veins and blood. It pressed against the window, stared at him as he slept. From its folds of flesh a tongue came out, licked at the rim of the glass, made squelching sounds as it kept licking. It gurgled, gunk falling on it.  
It’s face opened to reveal eyes. Eyes that looked like human ones, but sickly. Yellow due to disease, long eyelashes covered in yellow crud that leaked on top of the glass. It moaned, and breathed. It was different from last time, like it had… changed.

He tried to not stare at it. His body was still far too stiff, completely immobile but he moved his eyes away. His gaze fell into the front of his bed.  
Jamison stood at the other bend of his dead. Still. Eyes wide open and staring at Mako like a statue. He didn’t even seem to breath. 

Mako tried to say something but it felt like his chest caved in. Jamison just kept staring with those golden eyes of him, the flesh at the end of his stump twisting and jerking. He was looking directly at him.

He opened his mouth and, oh. Oh. It felt like Mako had been stabbed in his skin several times. He felt his breath leave him, mind freezing while a horrible pain overcame him. It took power of him. It left him small and useless.

A voice, not Jamison’s came out of that mouth, as if something was living deep inside Jamison, on his guts, deep in his belly and that voice came from that thing. 

“I am awaiting, Priest.”

 

His body slamming into the floor woke him up. Mako pretty much backed up into the wall, heartbeat going crazy as his eyes scanned the area. He looked up.  
There had never been a window at his ceiling. It was a dream. It had been a dream. Nothing but a fucking nightmare, that’s all. Nothing else.

But even so, Mako clawed at his clothes as he tried to calm himself down.

Jamison…

Very carefully he exited his room, going towards the living room where Jamison supposedly slept. He caught a glance at the clock in the hallway. It was three a.m.  
Mako licked his lips as he very quietly moved forward.

As expected, Jamison was sleeping on the large couch, curled into himself. His sleep looked peaceful, breathing in and out slowly, completely calm.  
It had been just a nightmare.

Taking a deep breath Mako made his way back into his room. He was starting to lose his mind.

He went to bed once more, closing his eyes. Tomorrow would be a new day.


	5. Sliced Ham

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was going to really fucking suck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mako goes to recruit Father Monroe's help
> 
> Hello!!! Still hanging strong!! This chapter took longer because this has been beta read! Also, the updates of this fanfic will, hopefully, be once every two weeks. Though, if there are more, we will see!! I am having lots of fun writing it and i hope y'all enjoy reading it
> 
> Shot out to trish, my gf, who was my beta! love u bby
> 
> Shot out to Loscaris, who drew fanart of one of the demons! [Check it out!](https://loscarisart.tumblr.com/post/170117215577/the-demonic-creature-from-the-story-of)  
> Thank y'all for reading!

The stupid birds woke him up along with the faint sound of the television in the living room. Mako huffed, looking at his clock. It was eight in the morning. He could barely sleep last night.  
That nightmare didn’t let him rest; he kept waking up unnerved, but it was just that-a nightmare. Nothing more. He didn’t even have a window on the ceiling, what the hell.

He groaned as he got up, sighing while rolling his shoulders. He moved on to the living room, feeling tired and shitty. Jamison laid on the couch, looking at some cartoons from local stations on the old screen. 

“Good morning,” he called out and Jamison sat up, a tired smile on his face.

“G’morning!”

“Did you have any trouble sleeping?” Mako asked. “Any nightmares? Anything weird?”

“I…” Jamison couldn’t hide it. He also looked pretty exhausted; it seemed Mako wasn’t the only one that couldn’t rest. “Had some, y’know. About me mum and dad.”

“I’m sorry.”

Mako was going to say how he had a nightmare with Jamison and a demon in it, but he wasn’t sure. He felt he really shouldn’t talk about it. Their nightmares probably weren’t related. 

“Yeah…well, ya gonna get that Father to help us, right?”

“Yeah. He should be in town by now. I’ll go and take a shower.” 

“Okay!” Jamison cheerfully called out, and went back to watching the television. 

Hoping the hot water would wash away his tiredness, he turned on the shower. He undressed as he heard the heating water run down the tub.

It felt pretty weird to get naked and shower when there was a young man in his house, but whatever. He was pretty used to living alone for most of his life, but it’s not like there was another choice at the moment.

He stepped inside of the bathtub with the shower on; he wasn’t going to take a bath this morning, even if he honestly needed it. He felt the hot, almost boiling water coat his skin, and it truly did wash away most of his anxiety and tiredness.

Okay, time to recap today’s activities.

Father Monroe would be back that morning. He probably was already in town. Mako would go to his home and would ask him for help regarding Jamison and the demon. It would be hard to convince Father Monroe that Jamison wasn’t a killer, so he should probably open with his own experience of facing the demon and having to lock himself in the church.

After that…well, if Father Monroe couldn’t help, then at least they could figure something out together. Mako had lost a lot of contact with the high clergy after the incident five years ago, but Monroe would hopefully know who they had to call to contain the situation.

He poured some shampoo on his palm, long hair falling in wet strands on his body as he lathered it onto his scalp.

All of this sounded so…professional. Like they were going to deal with some stupid festival or something, not a demon that murdered people. It was so bizarre. It would have been funny if it wasn’t honestly so horrifying. 

He washed off the shampoo and the soap with attention. Getting out of the shower meant he would have to face the harsh reality of the situation, something he absolutely didn’t want to do. But he was the only one who could do it, so he had to. 

He dried himself off, taking his time to reach over his back and fat to make sure he was truly dry. Mako cursed himself as he realized he hadn’t brought his clothes to the bathroom. Normally it was no issue, but Jamison was there. Well. He tied the towel onto his hip and went out of the room. 

From the bathroom door, Mako had a view of the living room. Jamison wasn’t there, and he heard the fridge either opening or closing. Mako quickly made his way to his room before Jamison could come back and witness him half-naked. 

Now in his room, he could get dressed calmly.

Once he was done, he dried his hair and put it up in a high ponytail, like always. Mako emerged from his room to see Jamison drinking a glass of water as he stared at the television. 

“News is on.” He pointed at the screen, noticing Mako getting nearer. “They’re still talkin’ about how there are no leads about me parents. Still lookin’ for me.”

Jamison’s mugshot appeared on the screen for a few seconds. He looked a bit younger on there.

“Was in college back then. Two years ago. Got kicked out! Oh, well. They don’t got a new one; I’ve been behaving nice!”

Jamison laughed loudly. “There don’t seem to be nothin’ new, though.”

“Okay. I’ll be off; I have to look for Father Monroe. There is food in the fridge and you can call my cell phone.”

“Ya got a cell phone?”

Mako shrugged and pulled it out. It was one of those really old models, not a smart phone like Jamison probably thought. He believed it could connect to the internet, but that took forever and wasn’t worth it. It was just really old, but it worked. “I’ll leave the phone number here next to the landline. If you need anything, call me.”

“Will do, mate!” Jamison changed the channels by getting closer. “Be careful, okay?”

He said this last thing with real concern in his voice, and Mako nodded. “Don’t worry. Don’t go out.”

“Gotcha.”

Mako closed the door behind him, taking a deep breath of the morning air of the forest. He got into his truck and started the engine, ready to visit town.

 

Even if it was the weekend, the city was pretty empty. He knew Father Monroe lived at the opposite side of town, so he had to cross town to get to his residence. Everything looked normal, which was…conflicting. It was almost like demons hadn’t tried to kill him and it all had been a ridiculous dream. 

He had never actually been to Father Monroe’s house, but he had his address in case of emergencies. It was in a small neighborhood with medium-sized houses. People were mowing their grass outside, children were playing, and mothers were chatting amongst themselves. The adults stared at him as Mako looked at the piece of paper in his hand with the address.

It was the house at the end of the street, painted a pale blue color. The residence was only one floor. Father’s Monroe car was already parked in the driveway.

Great. It was time to talk to him.

He rehearsed what he wanted to say in his head, but no matter how much he tried, he couldn’t really come up with anything decent to say. He would have to wing it.

This was going to really fucking suck.

It had been years since he had seen the man. They didn’t really…speak at all. Well, it was time to. Mako had to get out of his truck.

Now.

...Now.

After hyping himself up for a few more seconds, Mako got out, closing the door to his truck and just making his way into the front door.

“Okay…” He took a very deep breath while he knocked on the wooden door and tried to calm his nerves. 

There was no response, so Mako knocked again a little bit more forcefully. 

But after several more minutes there was nothing but silence.

Mako turned around and saw the Father’s car in the driveway. What?

He flagged down a woman who was taking the trash out, calling her attention.

“Excuse me, is Father Monroe home?”

“Oh, good morning. He arrived before sunrise…I saw him arrive as I took the dog out, about six a.m. He should be inside.”

“Thank you.” Hmm. Maybe he had fallen asleep? If he had arrived that early, maybe he was sleeping now, but Mako also knew that he was an early riser, so maybe he was already up and about. 

In normal circumstances, Mako would have left and waited until later to speak with him. Maybe even just gone to the church and waited for him, but this was a very delicate situation, literally life or death. So, fuck that; he was going in. 

The front door was open, he realized by twisting the knob and opening it. He carefully stepped inside, closing the door behind him as he looked around. “Father Monroe? It’s me, Mako Rutledge.”

Nothing.

Mako licked his lips. Maybe he did fall asleep. It felt weird having to intrude into his house, but once again the matter was pretty fucking urgent. 

“Father Monroe?” he called out once more, but nothing. 

He was starting to feel pretty uncomfortable. Walking through the house was very eerie. It was silent, minimal decorations and paintings of Jesus and the Virgin Mary on the walls. Crosses of different designs and materials hung on the walls as well. 

As awkward as it was, he went through the entire house, even his bedroom, but there was no one there. But he had certainly arrived; his luggage was still in his bedroom, undisturbed (well, Mako guessed it was. He wasn’t going to open the old man’s luggage). Had he already left for the church? But his car was outside; walking to the church would probably be too much for an old man like him.

“Father Monroe?” he asked once again even though he knew no one would answer this.

Defeated and trying to find any sort of explanation, Mako left the house. Scratching the back of his head, he tried to figure out what to do. Did Father Monroe have a cell phone? Probably not. Maybe his car had broken down and someone had given him a ride to the church. Maybe-

He heard a noise coming from the backyard of the house. It was something that sounded like creaking. Had he been in the backyard all this time?

“Father Monroe?” Mako called out as he went to the back of the house and into the yard. The grass was green and didn’t seem disturbed. “Are you here? It’s me, Mako Rutledge. I need to speak to you.”

Nothing. 

The backyard was pretty bare. Some bushes decorated the fence, with a tree in one of the corners. On the opposite corner was a small shed. He heard another soft sound coming from there.

“Ah.” Mako felt his spirit lift while he made his way towards the shed. The priest was probably doing some yardwork. That was probably why he couldn’t hear Mako from the inside. “Father Monroe, good morning, I must speak to you.”

But Father Monroe didn’t answer. He still probably couldn’t hear him. The man was in his sixties, his hearing probably really bad. Even more since the shed was closed. 

“Father Monroe, It’s me, Mako Rutledge,” he almost yelled to let the old man know he was there, grabbing the handle of the shed and opening it. “I apologize for intruding into your home, but it is urgent-”

Father Monroe’s body crashed to the ground at Mako’s feet with a loud thud. His mouth was agape, blood pouring out of it and out of his nose. His eyes were wide open, staring at the sky. His throat had been ripped apart, open and bleeding all over his torso.

Mako made a choked noise, stepping back. He covered his mouth and turned away from the body, ears ringing painfully. The smell of blood reached his nose and made him sick. Mako fell to his knees, dizzy, the corners of his vision going black. 

He barely turned around to see the inside of the shed. There were words written on the opposite wall of the shed, smeared over the wood with blood.

_GIVE HIM TO US_

Mako threw up. 

 

\---

 

“Alright, Mister Rutledge, we need you to answer to some of our questions. You discovered the body, didn’t you?”

Police cars surrounded the small house. Mako was leaning against his truck, big palm covering most of his face. Detective Jonathan was standing in front of him, his notepad already present to write whatever Mako said. 

He took a deep breath and nodded. 

“Can you tell me how it was that you discovered the corpse?”

His hand went from his face to his scalp, going through his hair. 

“I…I came here at about nine. Wanted to speak with Father Monroe. The neighbor told me he came home before the sun rose. Knocked. Wasn’t there. Entered the house, wasn’t there.”

“What was so urgent that made you enter his house even though he didn’t answer?”

Demons. But he wasn’t going to say that, so he had to make up a reason. 

“He is an old man. About sixty-four, right? Saw his truck outside. Thought he had an accident inside. Wanted to make sure he didn’t fall and break his hip.”

The detective just nodded and wrote the response down. It was a pretty believable excuse. 

“So, what happened next?”

“I saw he wasn’t in the house, so I went outside, thinking maybe someone gave him a ride to the church, that maybe his car broke down. I heard noises come from the backyard, though, so I went to check it out.”

“So you went to the shed?”

“Yes. I heard noises inside. I opened it, thinking that maybe he was doing some yardwork and hadn’t heard me, but as soon as I opened the door his body crashed to the ground.”

“It seems that the body was propped against the door. Whoever was to open the door, the body would fall at their feet.”

Mako nodded. God. He felt sick. 

“We might hear your statement once more, but this should be enough.”

“I’m not a suspect, am I?”

The detective shook his head.

“Whoever did it had to sneak out of the window. The windows are too small to fit someone of your girth. And the neighbors’ statements do confirm that you arrived after he died. He had been dead for about three hours before you found him. The way the body was propped, the only way it could have happened was if he was killed from inside the shed. There isn’t evidence to pin you as the killer. However,” he pointed his pen at him, “any evidence can come out, so I wouldn’t be too calm, Rutledge.”

He nodded.

“One more question: what was so important that you had to come to his home and talk about it?”

“Religious issues. Wanted to discuss something about the clergy with him. I haven’t been in contact with our higher-ups in a while, wanted to check if things were still okay.”

“Hmm. Okay. One last thing,”

Mako clenched his teeth. He just wanted to get out of there. “Yes?”

“The words ‘Give him to us’ were written in blood. Does this mean anything to you?”

Mako blinked a couple of times, tired. “No. I don’t know what that means.”

“Okay. Thank you, you can leave now.”

Mako nodded and got into his truck. He gulped, hands shaking while he drove away. He looked into his rearview mirror to see the local news arriving to start their report on the murder. 

God, he was so fucked. He was so, so fucked.

He wasn't even sure what to do. The one person who seemed like he may have had some answers was dead now. Mako kept rubbing at his face and eyes. He was going to lose his mind. Despair hit his guts, and without even noticing he drove back home.

He didn’t get out of his car for a while, pressing his head against the steering wheel. His mind was racing, the image of the corpse still fresh. It couldn’t be a coincidence that he was killed outside his home. It couldn’t be a coincidence that the same words that demon yelled at him were written with the priest’s blood.

He punched the dashboard.

Mako got out of the truck and into the house. The television was blaring with the most recent news. Jamison stood in front of it, looking at it with disbelief. He looked up at Mako and then down at the screen.

“He…”

“I saw him. I saw his body.” Mako took a frustrated breath, grunting. “Went to his house. He was already dead. A demon did it.”

“B-but, but he was going to help us, he was-”

“I think it was a demon.”

“B-but Mako, he was going to help us! What are we going to do? What-”

“Jamison.”

This caught the young blond’s attention, and he stared at Mako. He looked absolutely terrified and desperate.

“I will contact the church myself. I will tell them about the situation. I…Father Monroe could have helped us, but he is dead. I am pretty sure a demon killed him. We need to escalate this, today. Now.”

“How-how do you know it was a demon?”

Mako looked at the ground, frowning.

“When I was attacked, the demon screamed ‘Give him to us’ at me. I am pretty sure they mean you. In the shed where he died, someone wrote ‘Give him to us’ in blood...”

“Oh.”

“I’m-I’m going to go to the church. I’ll call the clergy. I’ll-”

“I want to die.” 

Jamison curled into himself, sitting down on the couch, arms wrapped around his torso. “I fucking-I fucking want to die. I can’t stand this, I can’t-”

“Jamison-Jamie.” Mako sat down next to him. “It’s okay. I’ll-I won’t let you die like this. I won’t let them get you. I won’t-I am not going to let them harm you.”

“Why do ya even care?!” He stood up, away from Mako, panicking and crying, tear tracks on his cheeks. “Why don’t ya just give me to ‘em?! That would solve yer problems, eh? Just give me away to tha’ demons?!”

“Jamie!” He stood up, both hands grabbing his shoulders to try and calm him down. “I won’t do such a thing. I don’t have to be a fucking priest to be a decent person. This is not right. None of this is right. You don’t deserve this. Father Monroe didn’t deserve it. None of us deserve this, and I will help you.”

Jamison started sobbing, clinging to Mako. He wasn’t going to let him die like a dog. He was going to help him, and find out what the fuck was happening. He was going to help Jamison. 

“Ye’re a good person,” Jamison said against Mako’s shirt. “Why don’t people like ya?”

“It’s…” Mako sighed. “Not important now. For now, we have to contact the church.”

“Are ye gonna leave again?”

Mako looked at the television screen. The investigation was still going, and they would definitely search the church. It would be off-limits for a while. 

“Please don’t…don’t leave. For a bit?”

Mako sighed and patted Jamison’s blond hair. “Don’t worry. I won’t. They’re investigating the church for now; I probably won’t be able to get in. I’ll stay here.”

“Thank you…” he whispered against his skin, and calmed down significantly. Mako just rubbed his head and back, soothingly. 

Minutes passed as he held Jamison until he fell asleep in his arms. Mako took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

They were together in this, and Mako would not let him down.


	6. Sirloin Roast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Father Monroe’s death was a shock to the small town. News stations and newspapers painted Jamison as the culprit for no particular reason apart from the fact that he was the prime suspect in his parents’ murders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things continue to develop
> 
> Hello!! Whats up!! new chapter, This one is kinda information heavy, but hey, we like that! Well, I do, sorta, haha!
> 
> Anyways, not much to say, apart that I hope y'all like it!! 
> 
> Shotout to my beta, my gf Trish! Love u!
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope y'all like it !

Mako barely fit in the passenger seat of the small old Corolla. He was a little bit pressed against the window and he had to tilt his head against the roof of the car. Alice Mason apologized, but Mako said it was no issue. Mako’s truck was at the repair shop that day, so they had to take her car.

She hadn’t said much about her actual issue with her daughter. She had come to Mako’s office asking him to help her child Amy because she seemed perturbed, and perhaps the help of a priest would do. The woman looked tired, dark bags under her brown eyes. When Mako asked her specifically why Amy was perturbed, or what made Alice think that there was an issue, she just shook her head.

“She is acting…acting strange. She is different. I see every kid her age going around, having fun, but she…” The woman took a deep breath. 

Alice Mason was a single mother. Her husband had died even before Mako had arrived in town, so she had to take care of her daughter alone. He remembered the woman being at his sermons, but Mako couldn’t recall Amy.

They arrived shortly at her home, and Mako got out of the uncomfortably small car as soon as he could. He stretched his muscles, popping his bones while Alice locked her car and guided him inside.

The inside of her house was very bare. The walls inside were painted a pale dark blue, faded through the years. She had barely any furniture, but it seemed more out of aesthetic and minimalism than a lack of money. The furniture was a sad brown color. There were absolutely no decorations apart from crosses on the walls. Not even family photos.

It unnerved him a little bit, if he had to admit. It was just too…empty. 

“She is in her room.” The woman escorted Mako towards a door at the end of the hallway. The hallway was as minimalistic as the rest of the house; it was a little creepy. “Please, Father…”

“I’ll do the best I can.” Even if he said that, he wasn’t even sure what the problem was. Alice seemed to be too unnerved and freaked out, so he would help her; after all, it was part of his duty towards the community.

The door was a pale pink, stickers with glitter plastered all over it along with colorful paper flowers. He opened the door slowly and peeked inside. 

“Hello, good afternoon,” he called out softly as he saw a figure in the center.

A young girl, a teenager, sat on her bed with her legs crossed. Long wavy hair reached to her back, freckled face and green eyes looking straight at Mako while she placed the book she was reading down on her lap. 

Mako recalled her face. He was good at remembering faces, and he could remember seeing hers while at church. 

“Hello…” She bit her lip anxiously.

“Can I come in?”

“Yeah, sure. I was, uh…” She looked down at her lap and just twirled her hands while Mako closed the door behind him. “I was reading.”

“That’s nice.”

Her room had very few things, but it was more decorated than the rest of the house. A cross hung above her bed along with some posters of flowers and some cartoons. It looked like a normal teenager’s room, if anything a little bit too empty. 

From Alice’s reaction and demeanor he had expected Amy to look…different. But she looked like a normal girl; she didn’t look like a drug addict or ill in any way. Her hair was a natural color, as were her eyes, and she wasn’t wearing any crazy makeup or outlandish clothes. Honestly, she looked okay and Mako wasn’t sure what Alice was talking about, unless it was more of an emotional issue. 

If anything, he felt a little bit awkward. He had never really talked with “troubled teens” before, and the way the young girl stared at him curiously made Mako want to hide, strangely enough. 

“I’m-”

“Mom called you, right?” she interrupted him, leaning a bit forward and staring at him with her big green eyes. “She asked you to come?”

“Your mother believes that I can help you with your problems. Maybe I can… guide you?” God, he was so awkward. 

“Um…did she…tell you anything?”

“She only said that you were acting strange.”

She looked away for a moment, sucking her lips while deep in thought. “You can sit!” She pointed at a wooden pink chair, far too small for him.

“It’s okay. I’ll probably break it.” 

“Ah, sorry!” She smiled. “You can… sit there!” She pointed to a corner of her room, which had a very, very neon pink beanbag chair that looked like it could withstand Mako’s girth. 

“Um, okay.” He went over, dragged the big ridiculous chair closer to the bed where Amy was sitting, and sat on it. It squeaked, but it was comfortable for his ass and, by the way the girl looked at him and tried to not laugh, he looked absolutely ridiculous. 

“So,” Mako sighed, crossing his arms and trying to look friendly to Amy, “how are things?”

Amy looked at him and then away, once again thinking carefully. It seemed like she was trying to choose her exact wording. 

“I’m sorry, Father Rutledge. Mom said she would call you to see if you could help, but I didn’t actually think she would!”

“You don’t think I can help you?”

“No, I mean-it’s not that. It’s just…Did mom say anything?” 

“Only that you seemed to need guidance.”

“See, look.” She scooted over to be closer to the edge of the bed. “Father, Mom thinks there is an issue when…there really isn’t. Ever since Dad died she has been a little bit…strange. She changed a bit, you know? We all did. But I don’t…think she should be worried.”

“I don’t really understand.” Mako scratched at his ear, still confused. “What does she believe to be the problem?”

“Mom…she thinks that there is something wrong with me because I’m not like…other girls, so to say?” She shrugged. “I was never really like her. Mom likes dresses, makeup, praying, you know. That sorta stuff. But I was always more like Dad. He liked reading and researching and studying. I’m just shy. I’m not popular. I don’t have any boyfriends and I prefer staying inside to going out. Mom thinks that I must have an emotional problem because I’m not really…an outgoing person.”

“So…your mom thinks there is something wrong with you because you are introverted?”

“Sort of…She has talked to me about it and begs me to tell her if there is something wrong but…there really isn’t? I’m sorry, Father, this is weird. I mean, I think that’s what she means by me being different.” 

Well, this was…awkward. There didn’t seem to be any “work” to be done here. Amy seemed to be very level-headed, but her mother seemed perturbed on behalf of her daughter. He wasn’t sure what to do in this situation.

“Well, your mom asked me to help you. She was a bit anxious about it.”

“I mean…if-if it helps my mom relax and calm down to think that you’re ‘helping me’,” she said while making air quotes, “then I don’t mind talking with you?”

“Oh? And what can we talk about?”

“I don’t know. What are your thoughts on the separation of the church and education? You as a catholic priest probably have thoughts about that kind of stuff. What about evolution? You believe in that? Do you think science-”

“Whoa, hang on. What a precocious kid you are.”

“Hey, I’m sixteen. I’m almost an adult!” She waved her hands excitedly. “I just want to, you know, know what you think about all these topics!”

Mako chuckled nervously. “Uh, let’s go slow, no?”

They spent the next hour just talking. Amy asked him things about church and he answered them as much as he could. The girl was a student in high school and she was already planning where to go to college to study science. Mako could already tell she had a sharp mind and there didn’t seem to be anything wrong with her. 

Even so, when he exited the room, Alice was already on her way to thank Mako, and she offered him some tea. He accepted, the tiny teacup looking ridiculous in his big palm. 

“Thank you so much for coming in on such short notice, Father. I just…I get so worried.”

He didn’t say a thing, taking a sip out of his tea and just letting her talk.

“Ever since her father died…she-she has been weird. She acts different from the other girls, from the other kids her age. I just, I want her to be normal and okay. I want her to…be like everybody else.”

“Sometimes differences are good. It doesn’t mean that it’s a bad thing.”

She stared at him, almost shocked.

“But Father, how can she be happy if she is so different?”

Mako didn’t say a thing. He took another sip from the tea. 

“Could you…please come here and talk with her? Once a week? Please.” She looked down at the cup in her hands. “I feel like it would be good for her.”

Mako thought about it. He felt bad about Amy and her mother, who obviously wanted something that Mako wasn’t sure if he could provide. He enjoyed talking to the young girl, and after all, wasn’t this part of helping the community? Making people feel better? If it made both of them feel better, than it was a win for him. 

“Don’t worry. I will speak with her.”

 

\---

 

Father Monroe’s death was a shock to the small town. News stations and newspapers painted Jamison as the culprit for no particular reason apart from the fact that he was the prime suspect in his parents’ murders. 

Now, in regards to a new priest…

Originally, Mako was the one that had been called to the small town after their previous priest died from old age. The process took months, however, and Mako was pretty sure it would take longer considering the extreme circumstances.

Mayor Brown was the one in charge of calling the clergy to notify them. Mako was torn between what to do. He was going to have to call the clergy on his own to notify them of the current situation. He hadn’t been in contact since the incident five years ago, apart from receiving his pay. They would probably send an investigator, someone specialized in exorcisms to deal with the issue, but he had no idea how long that could take. 

A day had passed since Monroe’s murder. Mako was already starting to get ready to leave to the church, the plan being to get the current number for the clergy and perhaps some books that may help him. However, before he could get out, there was knocking on the door.

Jamison, who at the moment lay in the couch watching television, jumped from it in horror and basically ran to hide in the bathroom. Smart. Mako sighed and opened the door. 

Doris Brown stood at the other side of the door, staring at Mako with her arms crossed.

“Good mor-”

“I heard you were the one that found Monroe’s body. You never speak to him or go to his house. What did you want with him?”

“...Good morning to you too, Mayor Brown.” She scowled. “As I told the detective, I wanted to talk to Father Monroe about some things about the church.”

“What things?”

“Clergy issues. Things to do with the church. I shouldn’t need a written reason why I want to visit a fellow coworker.”

“Hmm,” she hummed. 

“Now, is there anything I can help you with?”

“I was told that you were very curious to speak with him. So I have come to tell you that the church is closed to the public while the investigation goes on.”

Fuck. “What?”

“The police are investigating it. There may be clues as to who did it, so it is closed to the public. I figured I would come and tell you, considering you were so intent on speaking with him and you suddenly want to communicate with the clergy, so I am telling you now that it is off-limits.”

Goddamnit. “There is a…library. At the Church. Is-”

“Off limits, Rutledge. No one can enter, only the police and detectives.”

“...Okay, thank you.”

She nodded, and seemed to look inside the cabin for a little too long. Mako leaned his body to that side, blocking her from staring at the inside of his house.

“Can I help you with anything else?”

“...I just wanted to remind you, Rutledge, that I am the one in charge of calling the clergy to inform them of the current situation. There is absolutely no reason for you to communicate with them.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I do, in fact. I have already informed them of the terrible tragedy. For the moment, they will wait until the investigation has settled to proceed with the next course of action. That is all.”

“Okay. Goodbye.”

He saw her walk towards her car, only to stop and turn around to face Mako once more.

“Who knows, Rutledge? Maybe you will be chosen as our new priest.”

Mako said nothing as she got into her car and drove away. 

He made sure she was away, waiting ten minutes after she left to scream in frustration into the woods. 

Slamming the door closed, he kept grumbling and cursing under his breath, rubbing his forehead. “It’s okay, she’s gone,” he called to Jamison, who emerged from the bathroom.

“Whoa, what happened? Ya look like someone stole yer truck.”

“It was Mayor Brown. Told me the church was off-limits, I can’t get there to get information.” God, things just kept getting worse and worse. He could see how this crushed Jamison, and just stared at the floor without knowing what else to say.

For Mako it, was easy to just give up, but every time he felt like there was no hope he would look at Jamison and his heart hurt. He couldn’t leave him to the wolves. He had to do something. He couldn’t leave him to die like an animal.

So, instead of losing hope, he sought for it. 

“It’s okay. I just…We need a way to search for the number and call them. I have books. A lot of books that I never even read. I don’t even know all the books I have. We can probably find something there.”

“Ya think it’s going to keep killing? The demon?”

“I don’t…know. I hope not.” Why did the demon attack the priest? He would think it was random, considering Mako was also targeted. Or…maybe it was because they were priests. Who knew? It was all connected to Jamison in the end, however. Mako rubbed his face with his big palm and made his way to his bedroom.

“Where ya goin’?” Jamison asked, following close behind until they reached the door to his room.

“I have lots of books here. Come on.” 

At first, Jamison wasn’t sure about entering the room, but did so as Mako opened a big closet, which had many labeled boxes. Books he had managed to get from the church, many of them unread.

There were about a dozen boxes full of books, and Mako knew there were more in storage in the small shed outside. If they couldn’t find anything in these ones, he would go check those out. 

"Oh wow, ya got so many books! No wonder ya couldn't read 'em all."

“When I was studying to become a priest I was excited. I went to secondhand bookstores and bought as many boxes of cheap religious books as I could. Didn’t end up reading most of them.”

They dragged the boxes into the living room, making a mess. Dust flew into the air and Mako was already dreading going over all of them.

“So, uh. What…are we supposed to look for?”

“Demons. Anything related to them. Exorcisms. If you find something you think can help, show me. The more we know about this the better.”

“Okay...So, let’s start, mate.”

 

\---

 

His eyes felt heavy, exhaustion kicking in. It wasn’t technically late, only being 10:00 p.m., but they had spent the entire day reading Mako’s old dusty books. They had gone through most of them, but there was still a box left untouched. 

Mako took a deep breath and got up from the couch. Jamison had fallen asleep with a book in his hand, drooling on the cushions underneath his face and snoring softly. Mako left him sleep. He wanted to call it a night, but he didn’t feel right leaving the last pile of books untouched. 

He went to the kitchen and made himself a cup of instant coffee, the kind that made fake foam when you put boiling water on it. He added sugar to it, taking a sip and moving back to the couch. The man dragged the box of books with him. These seemed way older than the others, their torn fronts and fragile pages signs of extreme age. 

At the bottom there was a book without a title, which certainly caught Mako’s attention. It was made with thick leather, very old. The spine had been sewn with grey thread, the pages misaligned a little. It had been handmade from the looks of it. Mako couldn’t remember ever reading it or even seeing it. 

He grabbed it, inspecting it closely. It had no name, no letters or anything on the outside. He carefully opened it, and the first page was yellowed yet blank.  
He flipped to the next page, careful to not damage the book. The title had been handwritten with ink in cursive letters.

_“A List of Demons”_

It didn’t say anything else. Mako blinked and skimmed through the pages. 

While Mako wasn’t too adept at demonology, he did know about the most known ones. Beelzebub, Baphomet, Mammon, etcetera. However, none of these were demons Mako had ever heard about. Names that he never recalled reading about. There were drawings trying to demonstrate what the demons looked like, but they were crude and sometimes even morbid. Explanations of who they were, what they did. Each page seemed more frantic than the last, descriptions being as detailed as they could be, but none of these seemed to help. He wasn’t sure if he could recognize the demon they were dealing with even if it was in that book. At least until he reached the last page. 

The drawing was of a mass of flesh. It looked like someone had lumped several steaks and pieces of meat together, but in the shape of a sick human, lumpy and disgusting, and that it kept accumulating flesh. Mako felt a chill run down his spine as he kept reading.

“ _Edacitas_ ”

He knew that word. It was Latin for voracity, gluttony. All the other pages describing the demons had been chock-full of details and drawings, notes and the like. This one, however, had but very few words.

“ _It feeds_ ”

There was nothing else on the page. Only those words, and the rest of the book was blank, yellow old pages brittle to the touch.

Mako felt a little nauseous, moving the book away from him. Some few, errant and very carefully folded pieces of paper fell gently to the floor from between the last pages. They seemed to be as old as the pages in the book. He picked them up, unfolding careful so as to not destroy the paper.

It had the same handwriting as the book. There was no date on the letter, like the book. Mako had to squint his eyes a little to make out what the smudged letters said.

“ _To whom it may concern,_

“ _While their knowledge on demonology is vast and informative, it is naive to believe that the church has information about every single demon that exists on this world. Evil exists in every corner, in people deep inside. These demons take advantage of that evil. They will consume and destroy, they will take and procreate through temptation and violence. It is important to know how to protect oneself from the temptations of these monsters._

“ _All demons are different; however, it is important to note that most of them have the same weaknesses. Vanquishing them depends on the kind of demon they are, but to keep safe from them, it is important to keep in mind: They cannot enter blessed places. They cannot touch blessed things. Religious items like crosses, rosaries, and holy water can harm a demon and repel it. It is advised to wear a blessed item and carry it around with you every day to prevent demons from influencing you._

“ _I have written this journal with the intention of helping whoever comes across these demons. I will catalogue a way on how to defeat them if necessary. Hopefully, this will come to you in a time of need. Goodbye._ ”

Whoever it was that wrote that, he never finished his book for one reason or another. And now Mako had it in his hands, incomplete. He put the book away, making a note to keep it around. Investigate further. He wasn’t sure if was the same demon they were dealing with, but Mako felt that the name was far too familiar for the being they had encountered.

He looked over the book, trying to find any hint of who wrote it. On the inside of the leather a name was carved, old but readable.

“Emilio Amaro”

Mako would have to investigate it later. Whoever this man was may have more information.

There were still some old books in the same crate. Sighing, he grabbed the next one and skimmed through it, not wanting to leave out anything that may help them.

 

\---

 

Mako woke up to the sound of the wind rustling the trees. He had fallen asleep on the couch and his back hurt due to it. Books were sprawled all over the place except for Amaro’s book, which he had placed away, separate from the others. 

The first thing on his mind as he woke up was Emilio Amaro. He tried to remember if he knew any priest by that name, but it didn’t ring any bells. The second thing that came to mind was that he was hungry.

Then, finally, the third thing that came to mind was that knocking sound coming from outside.

He stood up with a jolt, looking around him. Jamison wasn’t there and the door was unlocked. Shit. Shit shit shit shit shit.

Mako ran outside to where the source of the sound was and-

The entire perimeter of the house was surrounded by thin metallic wire. It was strung along the trees, bells tied to them at the ends. The bells looked heavy, but the metal wire was strong enough to keep them up. He looked around, trying to figure out where the knocking sound was coming from, when he found Jamison up in one of the trees, using a hammer to put…something on the trunk and using his stump to keep the thing in place.

“What the fuck?!” 

He caught the youngster’s attention. Jamison looked down and waved, hammer still in his hand. 

“Good morning!” 

“Get down from there! Someone will see you! You’ll fall and break your skull!”

“Hold on, I’m basically done!”

Jamison shoved the hammer handle into his mouth to hold it. Mako almost had a heart attack when he saw the young man very carefully balancing himself to climb down. He had to admit, Jamison was really good at this considering he only had one arm, crawling down slowly but steadily. Even so, Mako kept his arms ready in case he slipped. 

He eventually made it to the ground, wiping the sweat off his brow and smiling up at Mako. “Hello!”

“What were you doing? What…is all this? What did you do?”

“Oh, well.” He stretched, popping his shoulders. “I don’t know about you, but the idea of some creeps just comin’ close to tha’ house really doesn’t sit well with me.”

“They can’t enter. It’s blessed.”

“I know, but still, I thought it was a good idea to know when they’re near, just in case. Be ready. Prepared. So, uh, I got into yer shed and found these tools. Made a perimeter with bells and wires. If anythin’ comes close, it will make them jingle and we will know.”

“What about the wind, or raccoons?”

“These wires are pretty strong.” He tested one with his finger, touching it slightly. The bells didn’t jingle until Jamison shoved his hand into it a little bit stronger, making the wires move and jingle. “It’s pretty thin, and I put some layers of ‘em around here. So it’ll be almost impossible for some fucker to come ‘ere and us not realize.”

“What-what about the tree top? What were you doing there?”

“While in tha’ shed, I noticed ya had a pretty nice photo camera. One of the fancy ones.”

Mako struggled to remember, but he was able to recall what Jamison was talking about.

“Won it in a contest. Never knew how to use it. Was too busy with moving here and forgot about it.”

“I know how they work. They even have a mode where if ya use the microphone it comes with, it can take pictures when it hears loud sounds. So whenever tha’ bells jingle, it’ll take a picture of the area. Then we can know what’s comin’.”

“You…” Mako looked all around him. It must have taken Jamison hours to do this; he must have woken up the second the sun rose and set himself to work. He was covered with dirt and sweat and scratches from the wires and branches. “You did this all yourself?”

“Well, didn’t wanna sit around doin’ nothin’. It took me a while but…well, here it is! Redneck’s home security system, haha!”

Mako was absolutely stunned. This was way too ingenious. It was…

Well, for now, they had to go inside lest someone see Jamison. “Come on, let’s go inside.”

“Hey, I don’t want to be a dick, but,” Jamison said as Mako closed the door behind him and locked it, just to be sure. Jamison was sweating and his clothes were dirty. “I…haven’t really showered since I came ‘ere, haha. Didn’t feel roight to just hop in the shower.”

Oh, gross. “You can take a shower, don’t worry.”

“I only got this change of clothes.”

Mako had been so stressed the past couple of days he hadn’t noticed that Jamison hadn’t showered or fucking changed at all. Goddamn. 

“I’ll wash them. Don’t worry.” Mako scratched the back of his neck. “Need to go to town anyways. Can stop at the Goodwill and get you some clothes.”

“Too tall, nothin’ fits me.”

“Give me your sizes and I’ll look for them. I tend to have the same issue.”

Jamison laughed loudly and Mako couldn’t help but smile. 

“Come on. Give me your clothes and I’ll put them in the washing machine.”

“Okay,” Jamison basically stripped down in front to his underwear. 

Jamison was… _weird_. He was very tall and skinny, skin sticking to his bones at odd angles. He looked like someone had grabbed a skinny kid and pulled at his limbs. There was some sort of attractiveness to it, the way his hips and hipbones jutted. 

Mako looked away until Jamison was done, underwear still on. “I mean, I can take ‘em-”

“It’s okay.” 

Awkwardly, and with Mako very obviously looking the other direction, Jamison took off his underwear as well and placed the ball of clothes in Mako’s hands before quickly slipping into the bathroom while muttering a very quick thanks.

Mako took a deep breath and moved into the laundry room. He didn’t bother to separate the clothes; none of it was white, anyways. He shoved them into the laundry machine, started the cycle, and got ready to go. 

Before he left, he knocked on the door to the bathroom. “I’m leaving. Call me if anything happens.”

“Will do, mate!”

Mako was still dazed from last night and from looking at what Jamison had done in the span of a few hours in the morning. He didn’t even thank him for doing that. He wished he could have helped, but he woke up too late. He sighed, taking his keys and leaving. 

It was time to do some research.


	7. Canned Ham

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You take care, okay?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mako investigates
> 
> ERRR HAPPY VALENTINE LOL. it just lined up with the day, but this is not really a lovely chapter HEH... anyways happy valentines i ate 3 krispy kream donuts and one kit kat chocolate and bought plants because that's what one does. I hope y'all stuffed yourself with chocolate or whatever candy you like.
> 
> Shotout to my lovely gf trish, who is also my beta! love you!
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you like it !

The small town didn’t really have a supermarket or anything like Walmart or the like. The general store was thankfully enough, however.

Before he went home, Mako had decided to buy his groceries so he wouldn’t have to return later. He held the grocery list in one hand, the basket in the other as he decided what type of cereal to eat. He should have probably bought something boring and bland like Kellogg’s, but instead he picked up some Fruity Pebbles and placed them in his basket. 

He had grabbed the essentials, along with candies and soda. It had so far been a lovely day, so he was taking his time and feeling at peace. Not many people were at the store apart from some housewives and some teenagers buying candy.

“Oh, Father Rutledge!” 

He was wearing his normal clothes, but even so he still stuck out like a sore thumb. Mako was massive, so it was pretty easy to identify him out of his priest clothes. He turned around and saw a woman holding a grocery basket. He couldn’t remember her name; even if it was a small town there were still a lot of people around.

“Good afternoon, Mrs…”

“Oh, I’m Betty Markin. I go to your sermon every Sunday! I just wanted to say hi.”

“Ah, well, hello.”

Obviously she wanted to talk about something else. Mako could tell by the way she just looked at him and bit her lip. 

“Apologies for the intrusion, Father, but I am neighbors with Alice Mason and her daughter. I’ve noticed you’ve come to her house the past few Sundays?”

Before Mako could even say anything, the woman spoke again.

“I spoke with Alice the other day. She told me you are currently helping her and her daughter.”

“Ah, yes. She requested that I go and talk with her daughter, yes.”

“Oh, that is such a nice thing for you to do, Father. Alice has been…a little bit different ever since her husband passed. It has been hard for her. I’m glad she has your help.”

“Well, I-”

“I’m just so worried about Amy, you know? She is so young but she never leaves the house! She spends all day cooped up reading her books. That can’t be good for a young girl her age, isn’t that right?”

“Er, well, she is still growing up. She will be fine.”

“It is going to be difficult for her to grow up without a man in the house. It’s not Alice’s fault, of course not, but you know. It can’t be right for her to grow up without a father.”

Mako didn’t really say a thing, the corners of his lips twitching. 

“She will be fine.” 

“I am glad! Well, Father, I have to go. See you this Sunday!”

“Goodbye.”

The woman continued to shop contentedly while Mako just stared at his groceries. He bit his lip, reaching over to the candy aisle and picking some taffy. He remembered Amy mentioning that those were her favorite.

 

“People think I’m weird.”

Mako was occupied with working on documents at his office while Amy sat at the other side of the desk doing her homework. She was there at her mother’s suggestion. She had proposed that maybe spending time helping Mako would help her. Since Amy didn’t seem to have any issue with it, he had accepted. Mostly she helped organize and clean up a bit, but Mako generally let her do her homework in peace while he worked.

“What makes you think that?”

“I know the way they look at me. They stare at me like I am different.”

“I know how it feels.”

Mako had always been different. Big, huge, scary-looking…ever since he could remember, people had mocked him and pushed him away due to this. It was a sentiment he was unfortunately way too familiar with.

“How did you deal with it? With people thinking you are weird?”

He could tell her the truth and tell Amy how he used to just beat the fuck out of the kids at the yard, landing in detention and, eventually, something worse. He could tell her the truth about how he had solved his problems by punching them in the fucking teeth until they laid in a pool of their own blood, but that was probably not good advice to give to a 16 year old girl. 

“Keep occupied. Focus on your own dreams. Focus on what you want to do for the future.”

“I want to go to college away from here. I want to become a scientist. I love chemistry! It’s my favorite subject and I am great at it.”

“Focus on that and you can achieve it. Don’t let anyone else tell you you’re weird.” 

“You’re pretty cool, Father. I mean…I thought you were going to be a cliché boring guy who would tell me I should get a boyfriend or something.”

“Thanks?”

“I mean, you’re cool. You’re pretty cool.”

Mako chuckled and continued to work while Amy returned to doing her homework. However, he could tell that the atmosphere was different, as Amy just couldn’t seem to focus on the work in front of her. She chewed on her pencil, staring at the paper but not really looking at it. Mako caught her eyeing him a couple of times, but she would immediately pretend she wasn’t staring at him.

“Is something the matter?”

“I…If someone confesses something to you, you can’t tell anyone, right?”

“I mean, unless it’s a murder or something.”

“But anything else?”

“No, I can’t tell anybody else. It is between the two of us.”

She kept quiet for a moment.

“Father, I need to confess.”

She insisted that it had to be done “by the book,” including them going to the confessionary even though Mako told her that it was okay if they did it in her office. Apparently she wanted the “real experience,” whatever that meant. He obliged happily, going into the confession booth and sitting down.

He heard Amy open her own booth and step inside, closing it and sitting down next to the little dividing wall. He opened the sliding window and saw Amy on the other side already sitting down, staring down at her feet. 

“Father, I must confess something.”

“What is it that you need to get off your chest?”

“I…” There was uncertainty in her voice that he had never heard before. “I know people think I’m different and weird for lots of reasons but I know I am different. I know that I really can’t truly ever be like them in a way.”

“To be different from others is not a sin. People would be boring if we were all the same.”

“I’m gay.”

It was at that moment that Mako truly understood everything. Why she was acting “strange,” why she was so worried about people finding her weird. It was almost as if an anvil had fallen on top of him. 

“That’s not a sin, either.”

“It’s not? I mean…There are a lot of people who think it is. And-a lot of priests and religious people, they-”

“God makes no mistakes when he makes us. What you feel is real and it is not a bad thing. Don’t think that there is something wrong with you because of that.”

“Mom says-” Fuck.

“People will say a lot of things about who you are. And they shouldn’t, but they will. But know that God does not judge you for who you are.”

“I…see.”

They went silent for a long time until Mako took a very deep breath.

“Can I confess something to you, Amy?”

“Huh? I-I mean, I guess so? Can you do that?”

“Just go with it.”

“Okay.”

“I’m gay too.”

There was a soft gasp from the other side of the wall.

“But you’re a priest.”

“Yes.”

“You’re not saying it to make me feel better?”

“No. It is the truth.”

More silence followed until both of them silently decided it was time to leave. They left at the same time, meeting each other outside the confession booth. Amy was playing with her sleeves, pulling at them and looking at Mako.

“Thank you, Father.”

“If you ever need to talk about it, know that you came come to me. For whatever reason.”

“Thank you. It’s nice to have someone to talk about this. I haven’t told anyone. I don’t think it will help my case with the whole weird thing.”

“Don’t worry about that. You take care, okay?”

“Okay. Thank you.”

 

\---

 

The library was a pretty decent size, all things considered. It was early in the morning and there were very few people in it, just some old men and a couple of kids. It had been a while since he had been in it, but he made a beeline towards the computers. 

They were old, but Mako didn’t mind as long as they had a decent internet connection. There was no internet connection back at his house, not that it mattered since he had no computer or smartphone to navigate the internet with. 

He sat down on the small chair, already feeling cramped in it. He pushed the feeling aside as he booted up the internet browser. 

The first thing he searched was for the word Edacitas. The only things he got were definitions of the word in Latin, which he already knew. He added the word “Demon” to his search, but it didn’t yield too many results. Forums popped up talking about demons and demonic beings, but nothing like what Emilio wrote about.

After spending several minutes trying to find something of use, he gave up on that angle. Now he searched for the name Emilio Amaro.

Links to newspaper articles popped up on the screen. Mako clicked the first one on the page, an article dated March, 1985.

“ _Grisly Murder of Catholic Priest_ ”

Mako blinked at the headline, scooted over to be closer to the screen, and continued to read. 

“ _This past Monday, Catholic priest Emilio Amaro, aged 35, was found dead in the woods outside of his residence. The body was found by two campers passing through the area. The presumed time of death was this past Friday, meaning the body had been dumped and decomposed for two days before being discovered._

“ _For now, the cause of death is unknown due to the exposure the corpse had to the elements. The body had massive chunks of flesh ripped out of it; bite marks were present on the flesh and bones. At first, it was believed that animals caused the damage, but the tests showed that the bites were made by blunt teeth, those of a human._

“ _Residents are advised to stay inside their homes at night and to be careful. The local police haven’t issued an official statement yet on what happened. Father Emilio Amaro was originally from Waco, Texas, but moved to the small town of Suilla to study demonology._ ”

Mako felt dizzy at the amount of information presented to him. It was just too much to take, and a part of him didn’t really want to understand what he had just read. 

He was still in shock. Before it all hit him, he closed the page and searched for the phone numbers he needed to call the clergy. Many numbers appeared on the screen; just to be safe, Mako absentmindedly wrote them all down on a piece of paper, feeling his mind disassociate from his body. 

Once he wrote them all down, he stared at the computer for several minutes until his eyes started to burn. 

Fuck. 

It seemed like anyone who could have helped him was murdered in horrible, terrifying ways. He didn’t even want to know if Emilio’s death was connected to what was happening to him, but he was murdered in that same town. Maybe there was some sort of connection.

He was _eaten_ for fuck’s sake. 

But why now? Why is it now that an actual demon appeared and not before? Maybe there was no actual connection.

Ugh, his head hurt. He needed to remember these theories and write them down for when he spoke with the clergy. He had the phone numbers he needed and more information besides. He could slowly pierce the story of this fucking place. 

He gathered his papers, closed his session, and left. The weight of the words he read was starting to hit him, the fact that Emilio had been killed in that town, that he had been eaten by a fucking demon and that he had written about what seemed to be the demon haunting them. 

He had absolutely no idea what he was facing. 

He had been in the library investigating on the internet for about three hours. Time had passed really fast, strangely enough. He got up in his truck and drove away. Before he went home, Mako stopped at the local Goodwill. He had promised to bring Jamison something he could actually wear. 

Luckily there was no one at the store apart from the bored teenager at the desk reading a gaming magazine. She eyed Mako as he entered and the bell on the entrance rang, but then went back to reading while muttering a “good morning.”

Finding clothes that fit the youngster was difficult; Jamison was just so tall and skinny. Mako was already adept at the art of finding difficult sizes, though, considering his massive girth. 

After a while, he managed to find about four t-shirts and two pairs of jeans that were Jamison’s size. He threw in a Pepto-Bismol-colored hoodie for the sake of it, too. It seemed the blond didn’t care much about egregious colors anyways. 

He paid for his clothes and, thankfully, the teenager didn’t seem to really care or realize that Mako was buying clothes that wouldn’t fit him. She was far too busy looking at video game videos on her phone. She just rang up the clothes, Mako paid for them, and he was on his merry way. 

As one last stop, he went to the general store. He felt bad for not helping Jamison, so he bought junk food, candy and soda. It was weird to buy these things like it was just a normal day, like he hadn’t just learned someone was eaten about twenty years ago. 

He turned the radio on for the ride home until he heard more news about the current murder case. Everything still pointed to Jamison, and they started to talk about his criminal record, dropping out of school, and basically trying to figure out why he would just go on a murder spree.

Mako just turned off the radio.

\---

When he entered his home, he heard the sound of the dryer in the background, but there was no Jamison in sight. “Hello?” he called, only to hear something falling in the bathroom.

“Sorry mate; clothes aren't ready yet. I’m naked.”

“Brought you new ones. Er, kind of new. They’re from Goodwill.”

“Oh, ya actually got ‘em? Thank you so much!” He heard the voice from behind the bathroom door. The door opened just a little for a bony hand to stick out. Mako gave him the pile of clothes he bought and the hand retreated, closing the door immediately as well. “Oh man, I gotta pay ye for this.”

“No need. They were pretty cheap.”

He put away the groceries while Jamison changed, then pulled out the piece of paper where he wrote down the numbers, staring at it.

Well, it was time. 

He sat in the living room, taking a deep breath before reaching over to the landline phone and dialing the numbers to reach the clergy’s internal office. The phone rang for few minutes as Jamison got out of the bathroom, fully clothed. They seemed to be just a bit loose on him, but apart from that they fit him well.

The young man crawled up to the other couch and stared at Mako intently, obviously interested in his phone conversation. 

A robotic voice answered the phone. “Welcome to the internal office of the Catholic Church, Southwest division. Press One if you wish to know about our church. Press Two for information about how to become part of the clergy. Press Three…”

Mako waited until the appropriate option and was sent to a secretary. He had to escalate a lot, being transferred multiple times to reach any actual part of the clergy. He was finally transferred to the bishop’s office, waiting anxiously as the phone rang until someone on the other side picked up. 

“Good morning, Bishop Carmichael speaking.”

Simon Carmichael had been bishop since Mako left for Suilla. He had never interacted with the man but he knew about him, and luckily for them, Mako knew he believed in demons and their physical incarnations.

“Good morning, Bishop. It’s Father Mako Rutledge.”

“Ah, long time no speak, brother. I am glad to hear your voice; we haven’t spoken since five years ago.”

Mako was not in the mood to recall the incident, so he just ignored that remark. The Bishop had been in contact with Mako to help him out several years ago and he was very grateful. Hopefully he could help with their predicament now. 

“How have you been, brother? Hopefully time has treated you well.”

“Time has made its damage on us, Bishop.”

“It sure has,” he laughed softly at the other end of the line. He was older than Mako, pushing his seventies.

“Unfortunately, Bishop, I do not call you for just pleasure. There is an issue I have encountered and I hoped you could guide me through how to fix it.”

“What is it, brother? What ails you?”

Well, this was going to be a fucking doozy. 

“I am very well aware that this may sound very incredible, Bishop, but I speak with God as my witness. I have reasons to believe that there is a demonic being in this small town, something that lurks in the shadows, something that is not from God.”

The other side of the line went very quiet.

“...While I do not doubt your information, I am curious as to how you came to this conclusion.”

“I have seen it, Bishop. I saw it with my very eyes. It was made of flesh, but it was not human. It dragged itself, bled and spoke in the tongues of those who have passed. It chased me into the church and it could not enter, as that was a holy place.”

“We were recently called because Father Monroe had passed. You were aware of this?”

“Yes, Bishop. I saw the demon and went to speak with Father Monroe. By the time I got there he was already dead.”

“The circumstances of his death have been strange, I must admit.”

“Bishop, I believe the demon was the culprit.”

“Ah… It would be perhaps inappropriate to say that I believe so myself. I believe you, Father Rutledge. I truly do. This is what we will do: there was already discussion of sending our own officials to investigate. With your testimony, we have more reasons to send people to make an assessment. They should be arriving in Suilla the day after tomorrow. I will make sure to inform them about the special situation. These men know about demons and how to deal with them, Mako. They will help you, and in case it's necessary, I will go to help myself.”

Mako took a deep breath, feeling like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

“Thank you so much, Bishop Carmichael. I…am not sure how I can repay this.”

“It is but our jobs as men close to God, Mako. But please, do keep safe. I will give you the number for my office and my cellphone in case you need more assistance.”

Mako wrote them down eagerly. 

“I apologize, but you must hang on. There are preparations that are needed before the trip. Please do communicate with me once these men arrive.”

“Thank you so much, Bishop.”

“Go with God, brother.”

They hung up basically at the same time. Mako relaxed against his chair, feeling his lungs fill with air.

“So I’m guessin’ that was good news?”

“They’re sending people the day after tomorrow. They know how to deal with demons. I have the Bishop’s number in case we need something else. We just need to wait.”

“So,” Jamison bit his lip, “if they can prove that everyone was killed by demons, then I will be free?”

Mako twisted the corner of his lip. He didn’t mention Jamison’s situation to the Bishop because it was 100% illegal. 

“They will figure out that it was a demon who killed your parents. That way, you will no longer be a suspect. You can hide here, then you can go free.”

“What if they still don’t believe it wasn’t me? Like some cops are gonna listen to some priests sayin’ a demon killed ‘em?”

Mako wasn’t sure about that. It was a very reasonable question, however. 

“Listen, Jamie. Don’t worry, I’m sure we can find a way to fix all of this. I will make sure of it.”

Jamison didn’t seem too convinced, squirming a little in his seat. 

Mako got up, went into the kitchen, and opened one of the drawers. He brought the plastic bag and gave it to Jamison, already open.

“Oh, man! Sour candy?!” Jamison grabbed handfuls of it and shoved it into his mouth, hissing at the sour taste but smiling nonetheless. “These are my favorite! Thank you!”

“No problem.”

“Nah, mate. I really want to thank ye. Ya don’t need to do any of this and ye do…Thank ye.”

“No, thank you for doing everything in the backyard. I couldn’t even imagine doing something like that, and you did it by yourself.”

“Eh, call it payin’ back for ye helpin’ me.” He shoved more candy into his mouth. “Also, ye are nice.”

“Really? No one has called me that in a long time.”

“I mean, ye are takin’ skinny fucks into yer house. That means ye are good, probably.” He took a breath and laughed. “Ye also haven’t asked, either.”

“Asked? About what?”

“Duh.”

Mako blinked. He wasn’t sure what Jamison was talking about, but whatever it was it was supposedly super obvious. It wasn’t until Mako stared at him for few seconds that he realized what the blond was referring to.

“Your arm?”

“Everyone seems to want to ask about it. Every single person! Like it's their business. Ye didn’t, though.”

“It is not my business, like you said. You didn’t ask why I am so big and fat.”

Jamison just started hollering. “Seems we are similar, ye and I.”

Mako stretched his hand to take some of the candy. He put some in his mouth and his face scrunched at the sour taste. They were too acidic, and he definitely did not like them, but Jamison seemed to love them. 

“So ye aren’t gonna ask?”

“No.”

“Hm. When people ask I just tell them a different story every time! Got into a fight with a crocodile, saved a kid from rabid wolves, punched the wall so hard me arm just exploded, haha! It’s real fun to see their reactions!” He shoved more candy into his mouth. “Ye are nice, so I’m gonna tell ya. It ain’t nothing interesting; me arm was bad so they chopped it up a bit when I was born. That’s all! Nothin’ cool, no crocodiles eatin’ me arm. Though that would have been cool!”

Mako felt something warm in his chest. Jamison was comfortable enough with him to tell him the true story behind his arm. It made him feel…good. And special. Trusted. He couldn’t help but smile. 

“Oh, also.” Mako stood up, going into his room quickly. “Wait here.”

He dug into his drawers until he found the rosaries he was looking for. He had many religious objects that had been blessed and he figured rosaries were the easiest choice. He picked one, went back into the living room, and gave it to Jamison.

“A rosary?”

“Use it. I read that demons won’t harm you if you are carrying blessed things. Wear it as a necklace”

“I should be safe here, though, right?”

“Let’s say it’s another layer of security.”

Jamison picked it, wearing it like a necklace and shoving it under his shirt. “Ya don’t got one for yerself?”

Mako pointed at the little cross necklace he had around his neck. It was a simple wooden cross, some black elastic string used to tie it around his neck. “This is blessed.”

Mako wondered. If it was really blessed, then surely the demon wouldn’t have been able to attack him before?

Well, that was something to think on another day. Jamison nodded, his fingers caressing the smooth beads. 

“Why did ya stop being a priest?”

Mako felt his chest ache. 

“It’s…I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Okay.”

The atmosphere went thick, and he could tell Jamison felt uncomfortable because of what he asked. Mako only sighed. “It’s okay, you didn’t know. I don’t feel good talking about it.”

“Nah, I getcha. Not gonna talk about it.”

They smiled at each other, the anxiety replaced by warmth and understanding.

\---

The sheets on the bed were sticky and wet, completely drenched. He thought it was his own sweat, rolling down his face onto the pillows like a waterfall. But it stuck between his legs, far too much to be just sweat. 

Mako took deep breaths, his massive body shaking with each one. He could barely move, the bells outside jingling like mad, a symphony of horror and repugnancy in his ears. 

It took him a lot of strength to sit up. It was pitch black, but he could just barely see what was ahead of him. 

He breathed, panicked, and grabbed the sheets, pulling them back.

A child’s arm lay between his legs, blood pouring out of the jagged end like a fountain. It seeped through the sheets, and when the blood touched Mako it started to envelop him as well.

 

Mako awoke panting, heart beating against his chest so hard he thought it would break his ribs. It took him several seconds to calm down, but the moment he ripped off the sheets as soon as he came to.

His bed was free from limbs and blood, thankfully. It had been a nightmare.

It was pretty early and cold. He dragged the sheets back to cover him, slumping against the pillows. 

Less than five minutes after he awoke, Jamison knocked rapidly, but then entered the bedroom anyways.

“Mako?! Mako-Ye awake?”

“Y-yes. Come on in. What’s the matter?” He rubbed his face tiredly.

“Did ya hear them, too?” Jamison bit his lip. “The bells jingled last night.”


	8. Pork Pieces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Do you still believe in God?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They Talk.
> 
> HELLO I know i've been putting a lot of my attention in this fic but tbh like... EH i really like it and im in the mood ;; i promise I'll work on other fics later !! I promise !! I just am having SO MUCH FUN with this one oh my GOSH. 
> 
> WELL here is another chapter! This one is kind of, very dialogue heavy, I hope you are okay with that!!
> 
> Shoutout to my GF trish for being my beta! Ilu baby!
> 
> Thank you for Reading and I hope y'all like it !

This was the worst thing ever and Mako hoped he would just die already.

It wasn’t his idea, either. It was the mothers who liked to attend his church who had suggested the idea at first, but one thing escalated to another, and now Mako was standing outside the church in a goddamn bake sale. It was the most suburban thing ever, and Mako just felt so embarrassed.

He looked extremely out-of-place among the stalls full of middle-aged women in pastel dresses talking amongst themselves while sharing their cake recipes. Mako hadn’t even needed to organize must of it; the members of the community were basically the ones that had organized it all. Mako just had to say “yes” and “no,” so at least it didn’t take too much of his time. 

The money was going to the church, so he should have been happy, but he was just painfully aware of how out-of-place he was. He should have been used to the attention; he was a priest, for God’s sake. He was used to people staring at him, but this was different. He was surrounded by colorful pastries and balloons.

Children ran around buying cookies and slices of cake and eating them, high on sugar and with their little faces smeared with fudge and pudding. This was going to be a very long day.

More families arrived, greeting him and shaking hands with him. Familiar faces that he had seen during service before. He didn’t know all of them, some of them only very rarely going to church, but he didn’t mind. Among the teenagers running around, Mako spotted a skinny lanky blond kid who was missing one arm. He recalled him seeing him around at church, but only rarely. He shrugged, going back to counting the money they had collected so far. 

He spotted the one armed teenager buying an entire plate of brownies and then running off, probably to play videogames. He rolled his eyes; that kid was going to have a lot of cavities. 

“Father Rutledge!”

He lifted his gaze to see Amy approaching him, her tired mother at her side. The teenager was holding some Tupperware containers in her arms as she approached him.

“Hey! What’s up?”

“Amy!” her mother sneered at her. “Talk with respect!”

“Oh, sorry, um.” She licked her lips. “Good afternoon Father Rutledge. What’s up?”

“Good afternoon. The day has been going well; we’ve been able to gather a lot of funds for the church.” Mako gave a tired smile. 

“Oh! I made cookies for the bake sale! They’re chocolate cookies, I made them myself!” Amy presented to him the containers with cookies inside. 

“I told Amy that it might be good for her to participate in these kinds of events for the community, Father.” Her mother smiled, her eyes blank.

“That’s…great. Thank you. You can put them there.” Mako motioned to a free spot in one of the tables. 

The teenager went over, opening her container and placing it on the table. Mako grabbed one of the cookies, digging around his clothes for his wallet.

“Oh no, it’s okay! Free for you, Father!” 

“Thank you,” he sighed as he took a bite of the cookie.

And immediately regretted it.

He immediately made a face, but gulped it anyway. It tasted of nothing but salt, and it hurt his tongue. Amy immediately became concerned.

“Is something the matter…?”

“This-”

“Amy! These are extremely salty!” her mother, Alice yelled out. 

“Salty? But-” Amy suddenly went beet red. “Oh no, I used salt instead of sugar!”

Well, that explained the terrible taste. 

“Oh no, they’re ruined! I’m so sorry! I must have mixed up the jars!”

The idea that they had just a jar of salt was confusing enough, but Mako didn’t dwell on it. 

“It’s okay, we can fix it. Alice, do you mind keeping an eye out while we go inside?” Mako made a small motion with his finger. 

“Of course Father! I will be attentive.”

“Thank you. Come on, Amy.”

They moved inside the church, making a beeline towards their office. Mako opened the door and went inside, followed by Amy.

“I’m confused. What are we doing here?”

“Hang on.”

He opened one of the drawers of his desk, retrieving its contents and lifting it up. He had an unopened box of chocolate chip cookies in his hand. 

“Let’s cheat today, right? Let’s say they’re homemade.”

Amy laughed loudly, her freckled cheeks going red with laughter. Mako couldn’t help but smile.

 

\---

 

“Be careful! Don’t break your skull!”

Somehow, even though Jamison only had one arm, the kid had managed to climb to the top of the tree where he had placed the camera. He had wrapped his legs around the trunk, trying his hardest to reach the camera with only one arm, but he couldn’t.

“Hang on.” He stood up on one of the branches, bracing himself with his stump on the trunk while his full arm reached for the camera. Mako had no idea how the fuck he had managed to place the camera there in the first place. “Oops!”

Mako felt his heart drop when he heard that, but it seemed Jamison had only managed to knock a pinecone off the branch, which hit the ground. 

“You’re going to fucking fall to your death, be careful!”

“Got it!” he yelled, lifting the camera into the air. It had a strap on it, which Jamison tied to his stump before making his way down. Mako extended his arms in case the youngster fell, but the blond was like a goddamn lizard, able to climb down without much difficulty.

“Here ya go!” Jamison cheered and threw the camera to Mako, who was barely able to catch it. “Told ya I could do it.”

“I could have climbed up.”

Jamison stared at him and didn’t want to state the obvious: Mako’s weight. The old man sighed and rolled his eyes, accepting that he would have probably broken his ass like three times before actually making it to the top. 

“Ya know how to use it?”

“Don’t we need to take the film out and go reveal it?”

“Man, how old are ye, 60?”

“I’m in my late forties.”

“Whatever,” Jamison snickered, grabbing the camera back. “With these, ya don’t actually need to go and reveal the film. These are digita;- ye can take the memory out and put it in a computer and see what’s in there.”

“I don’t have a computer.”

“Figures; it’s okay. It has a screen where ya can see the pictures without havin’ to pull the memory out.”

He turned it on, clicking some buttons, and the screen of the camera lit up. Jamison continued pressing buttons.

“I made it so it would take pictures if there were any loud sounds. We both heard tha’ bells last night, so it should have taken some pictures.”

Mako scooted and stood next to Jamison, staring at the screen. 

“It was at night. How are we supposed to see?”

“Put it on night mode. Most cameras nowadays got it.”

He felt the youngster gulp as he pressed the buttons to look at the pictures. There was nothing in the first one, just the woods and Mako’s cabin, everything still boarded up. There was no way you could see the inside, which made Mako feel at least better.

The next picture was about the same, except the branches were in different positions. The next picture after that was also the same, the branches and leaves moving.

Perhaps they had been wrong, and the bells had been activated by very strong wind.

Jamison clicked the next button. The picture seemed the same, except that something seemed to be creeping from the bottom of the screen, something shiny and lumpy but in the shape of a human. 

Mako tensed and he felt Jamison tense as well. They didn’t say a thing as he clicked next and saw the figure making its way towards the cabin. Even if it had a human shape, it seemed ragged around the edges, as if it had a hard time maintaining it. Jamison gulped as he clicked next.

The creature was in front of the cabin, standing like a person.

Next picture it turned its head towards the camera.

Jamison’s fingers started to shake as he pressed the next button, the figure now out of frame.

“There is, uh,” Jamison took a shaky breath, “one more picture in the album.”

Without saying anything else, he clicked next.

Wet meat in the shape of a face was staring directly at the camera. Its eye holes seemed to be cut out of carved meat rather than an actual face. Blood bubbled out of the corner of what Mako assumed to be its mouth. The eyes were just glowing dots deep in the eye sockets. Hair grew like tumors out of its head, brittle and disgusting.

Jamison let go of the camera, yelling. He keeled over, covering his mouth with his hand but it, didn’t stop the vomit from spewing out. 

“It’s- fuck,” Mako heaved, and he felt a pain in his chest. He could barely breathe and the corners of his eyes were getting darker.

A goddamn fucking panic attack. He tried to breathe, but no matter how much air he sucked in it couldn’t fill his lungs. He kneeled, sweat rolling down his forehead as his chest felt like it was compressing into itself and his heart beat like a maniac.

“Oh, fuck!” Jamison reached over to him, his hand going up and down Mako’s back. “Fuck, we need to get ya inside, come on.”

Mako put his meaty arm around his thin shoulders. He stood up as much as he could, but his knees were extremely weak and they felt like they would give out at any minute. He had to lean on Jamison, who was barely able to hold him up.

“Come on big guy, come on…”

They very slowly made it inside, where Jamison placed Mako on the couch to sit down. His vision was cloudy, but he saw Jamison run towards the kitchen. Mako kept trying to take deep breaths, closing his eyes and attempting to calm down. Soon enough, Jamison returned with a glass of cold water, which he gave to Mako.

He took it and drank it in one go, the coldness going down his throat and stomach and helping him ground himself a little. Even so, he still felt his blood pressure high, heart still beating hard and fast.

“Ya okay?”

“Yes, yes. I just…” He gulped. “Just need some space.”

“O-ok mate. I need t-t-”

He couldn’t finish his sentence, as he stood up and ran towards the bathroom. Mako heard him throw up even more.

Several minutes passed before he heard the toilet flush and watched Jamison stumble out of the bathroom and out of the cabin. Mako tried to follow him, but his knees wobbled and he couldn’t keep himself upright, forcing him to sit down once more on the couch. 

“Jamie?” he called out from inside. About a minute later, Jamison entered the cabin once again with the camera in his hand. It was turned off, but he went over and placed it on the table, sitting across from it and staring at it intently without saying a thing.

“That’s the thing.” He pointed at it. “That’s the thing that killed me parents. I saw it. It was that. It…it fucking, it knows we’re watchin’ it.”

“It can’t…it can’t touch us.” Mako sighed, shaking his head. “This place is blessed and we are wearing blessed items.”

“It still fuckin’ knows where ya live! Knows we’re watchin’ it! It fucking knows!”

“Calm down.”

“No! I fuckin-God-”

Jamison stood up and skulked off somewhere. Mako still was clutching his chest, feeling his breathing going back to normal. That is, until he spotted Jamison carrying his shotgun and making his way outside.

“Wait-” Mako basically jumped to his feet and ran towards Jamison, who was already starting to make his way towards the woods with the shotgun in his hand. Mako grabbed him by the shoulder and very harshly spun him around. “What the fuck are you doing?!”

“I’m gonna hunt that fucking shithead! I don’t give a shit what it is, I’m gonna blow its fucking brains out!”

“You only have one fucking arm. How are you going to fucking use that?!”

“I climbed the tree because yer fuckin’ fat ass couldn’t! I bet I can shoot this fuckin’ thing!”

“You need to calm the fuck down!” Mako was starting to yell, too. “What do you think you’re going to do? Go to the forest, get lost, and die?”

“That thing fucking wants me, no? Then I’ll let it come close and fucking shoot it in the face!”

“You will get yourself killed! Come back and-”

“No! I’m tired of bein’ holed up in there! I fucking want to do something! I want this all to stop!”

“Jamison,” Mako spoke with a very stern voice, but he wasn’t yelling. Yet. “I need you to calm down. Tomorrow, people from the church will come and they will help us. They will help you, and we can figure out what we have to do. But you _need_ to calm down. You can’t just go into the woods with a shotgun you probably can’t even use. You’ll get yourself caught by the police, or worse. Killed.”

Even though the youngster was red in the face, sweat rolling down his forehead, he seemed to calm down. Jamison took very deep breaths, going very silent and staring at the ground.

“I’m so tired. I just want this fuckin’ nightmare to be over with.”

“Me too. But, you need to be patient. Come on, give me the shotgun.”

Jamison did so and they slowly made their way back with calm steps. It was early in the morning and he was already exhausted. 

“Thank you.”

“Huh? What for?” 

“The camera. You set it up and went to get it today. You were right; I couldn’t have done that.”

“Eh… don’t sweat it.”

“Now that we have photographic evidence, we can show it to the priests that are coming tomorrow.”

Jamison made a sound of agreement. They were both tired, physically and emotionally. Once they entered the house, Mako closed the door behind him, going directly to the couch and sitting down. The furniture whined and creaked under his weight. He needed to replace it.

The blond sprawled on the other couch, taking a deep breath and rubbing his eyes with his face. “What do we do?”

“Wait until tomorrow.”

“Are ye gonna tell ‘em that ya got me here?”

That’s something Mako hadn’t taken into consideration. He needed to tread very carefully; after all, Jamison was still a fugitive, a murder suspect. If he told the priests that…

It may mean that they would take Jamison away. Mako knew it hadn’t been the youngster who killed his parents, but it wasn’t like he could just tell the police it was a demon.

Maybe they could help the boy. Send him somewhere safe, someplace far away where people wouldn’t recognize him.

He would have to speak with them first about the demon and how to deal with it. The topic of Jamison would come out after they had a general idea on how to proceed.

“We need to be very careful.”

“I’m gonna have to leave this town, right?”

“It’s…most likely, yeah. Even if the priests prove your innocence, who knows what the police will say.” Mako sighed. “Sorry.”

“Eh. I always wanted to leave this place.” He stared at the ceiling, his fingers drumming softly on his stomach. “Fuckin’ piece of shit town. Not like this, though.”

“You don’t want to stay here?”

“No! I mean, I never really wanted to. I always wanted to go to places, y’know? Wanted to live somewhere in the city, get away from this place. Be someone else for a change. I know people who just stay here from when they are born until they die.”

A memory of many years ago, a young teenager telling Mako she wanted to get out of the town and do something with her life, resurfaced. The memory of Amy hurt his heart, and he shoved it deep down before he got too sad. 

“No one ever believed me.” Mako was so distracted that he hadn’t caught what Jamison was talking about.

“Huh?”

“Ya know, I told ‘em I was gonna get out of this place. Do somethin’ with me life. Get outta this shitstain town where everyone stares at ye and judges ya and just sets ya up to fail. But none of ‘em believed me. Not even me parents. They wouldn’t let me travel or anything! I always had to be in this stupid place.”

“Why wouldn’t they believe you?”

“They said I’m too stupid to make anythin’ outta me life.”

“You set up a pretty decent ‘redneck’ alarm system back outside with nothing but scraps. Why do they think you’re too stupid?”

“I made some stupid decisions in me life! I wasn’t good at school. I mean, I understood what they were saying, but I just couldn’t deal with it? It felt like my brain would jump around and it was restless, and I didn’t do the things the way _they_ wanted me to do ‘em, so they would yell and scold me. Was never good at school. I also, well, shoplifted and did stuff like that. So now I’m a piece of shit criminal and I will never leave this place.”

He took a very deep breath after that. Mako could tell Jamison had just realized how much he talked and let out. 

“Sorry mate. I am just pretty upset about everythin’, ya know?”

“Just because you fucked up in the past doesn’t mean you can’t do good in the future.”

“People think I am not worth shit, though.” He put his hand under his head, shifting on the couch. “After an entire life of people telling ya how much shit ye are, maybe you start acting like shit, and then they get upset! Like what the fuck did ya want me to do?!”

“They set you up for a role and are surprised when you start fitting into it.”

Jamison shifted, propping his torso up with his arm as he stared at Mako from the other side of the room. 

“I mean…It’s shitty that they were already telling you you were going to fail before you even tried. You were never going to be good enough in their eyes.”

“Ye’re right. I did some pretty cool things, but did any of these fuckers care? No! They just rolled their eyes. How’s that for positive reinforcement or whatever?”

Mako hummed. Jamison laid once more on the couch, staring at the ceiling while picking at the loose threads of the couch. 

“Can I ask ye a question?”

“Yes.”

“Why haven’t ye left? Ya don’t seem to like this place, either. Why didn’t ya return to the church, be a priest somewhere else? Do ya really like this place?”

“...No. I used to like this place, but not anymore. I have nowhere else to go, no reason to leave.” He scratched his belly. “I don’t want to be a priest anymore.”

“I’m sorry everybody hates ye. You’re a good person.” 

“I’m not a good person. I did a lot of shit in the past.”

“So? Ya just told me that I shouldn’t care about that shit, and now you’re tellin’ me you think ye are shit because you did shit as a teen? You should follow yer own advice.”

Mako pinched the bridge of his nose. “This is different.”

“How so? I mean, I was a criminal! I stayed in jail overnight!”

“You don’t understand.”

“Well, do ya think people can be redeemed?”

Mako was starting to get exasperated. “Some things you can’t redeem.”

“Ye are a priest; what the fuck could you have done that ye can’t be redeemed?”

Normally, Mako would have kept quiet and not said a thing. He would have let Jamison keep talking and not let it get to him. However, Mako was pretty exhausted and he had just seen photograph of a demon made out of meat, so normality was out the window for now. 

“I was in jail long before you were even born.”

“What for? Killing a fly?”

“What do you think people think when they see me? Someone big and menacing? They would think I am a criminal.” Mako took a deep breath, reaching over to the table and picking up his cigarettes. He lit one up, placing it between his lips and taking a deep drag of it. “Before I became a priest I was a criminal. Got arrested. Got in fights where we would land in the hospital.”

He took another drag of the cigarette and spilled the smoke into the air. “Your little littering and shoplifting is nothing compared to what I used to do.”

“Haha! Ye are kiddin’ me.” Jamison sat up, giggling and laughing at Mako’s story. “Ye are tellin’ me you, a priest, used to be a criminal? Getting arrested? Breakin’ people skulls? I can just imagine it!”

“They used to call me the Hog.”

“The Hog! Oh my God!” Jamison couldn’t stop laughing. Mako said nothing, simply smoking his cigarettes as Jamison had his fun laughing, wriggling, and being generally obnoxious. “What made ya quit that and become a priest? Were ya like, ‘welp, not anymore!’ and went to sign up for Catholic school?” He kept laughing.

“My best friend died in my arms.”

Jamison then went very, very quiet. He went still, taking a gulp as he stared straight at Mako. 

“Ye are pullin’ me leg…right?”

Mako shook his head.

“Shit…I’m so sorry mate. I didn’t know.”

“He was shot by another biker. In the throat. He had no chance. Figured it was time to do something in my life, something better than that. Felt like I needed to get closer to God. So I became a priest.”

“That’s… real noble of ye, mate. I don’t think I would have done the same.” 

“Thought it was a sign from God that I survived that night.” He took another breath from the cigarette. 

“Do you still believe in God?”

Mako stared into the distance, the cigarette burning between his fingers. His lungs and body felt heavy. He pursed his lips, licking them before answering.

“No.”

“I am not sure if I do.” Jamison sunk into the couch, staring at the floor while his fingers fidgeted. “I mean, I used to believe that maybe there was a God. But now I just don’t know. I saw a demon eat my parents, though; the fact that demons exist mean God does too, right?”

“Does the existence of something means the existence of another? I don’t know. That’s up to you to figure out.”

“Is that why you aren’t a priest anymore? Ya stopped believing in God?”

Mako rolled his eyes and groaned. “You ask a lot of questions.”

“Well, I’m sorry mate, but we’re gonna be here for a long while. Would be better if we knew each other, eh?”

Absolutely not, to be honest. He would rather not. But he had already told Jamison the story of how he became a priest, so he had already succumbed to the idiot. 

“No, that’s not it. It’s something that happened some years ago that made me stop believing in God.”

“That’s kinda sad. Ya turned to that after ye were a biker, and now ye just don’t believe in it anymore.” Jamison made a sound in his throat, thinking. “I would be pretty upset if that happened to me. I guess it is kind of happenin’ to me right now. Shit I used to believe in is not real. And people think I killed me parents and that priest, too.”

They remained silent for a moment. Mako continued to smoke his cigarette while Jamison just sat on the couch, fingers jumping around. Several minutes passed before the young man let out a chuckle.

“Do ya know how I got kicked outta highschool?”

Mako shook his head gently.

“Wasn’t even because I got caught shoplifting a month before. Nah, they were okay with that, I guess. Not even because I caused a small fire in the chemistry lab. That was completely on accident, I swear! Nope. It was something extremely bullshit. I saw one of the sports guys; ya know, big, muscular, had always two girls on his side clinging to him like koalas…ya know the type. He was a big bully, too. But nobody did anythin’ because dear old Daddy was a teacher in the school.”

Jamison made himself comfortable on the couch, remembering the events with a strange fondness. 

“Anyways. Was tired of ‘im. He shoved me into lockers, kicked me, ya know. The usual. But who cares; I can already take it. I know how to take punches. I’m okay with that. Well, One day I’m going to class and I see this asshole, Jared, talkin’ to some poor freshman, right? A tiny nerdy lookin’ girl. Big glasses, braces, the fuckin’ whole cliche. He is basically pushin’ her around, and no one did anything! They just ignored it. And then he fuckin’ punched her. I saw her glasses fly off her face and land at his feet and he fuckin’ stepped on them. Ruined. And ya knew what I did?”

Mako smiled, knowing what the answer to that was going to be. He sat at the edge of his seat and leaned towards Jamison, cigarette in his mouth. “You punched him.”

“Even better.” Jamison leaned forward as well, closer to Mako’s face. “They were havin’ that little scuff next to the stairs. I ran towards ‘im. Pushed him down the fuckin’ stairs.”

He started laughing hysterically, sighing at the end of his fit. “Knocked out about three of his teeth. Broke his leg. Boy was fuckin’ star of the team and I knocked him down so hard he couldn’t play the entire season. They lost every game.”

“Haha! It’s what he deserved.” Mako laughed, feeling the justice of his juvenile years wash over him. “What happened next?”

“Well, his dad was one of the teachers at school, so they kicked me out. Didn’t matter he punched that girl and broke her glasses, nope! I was the one punished. I don’t care, though. Fuck that! That place was the fuckin’ worst. Ya wanna know what happened to Jared?”

“Got to college on a sports scholarship and made it big, right?”

“Close!” Jamison’s smile went a little sour. “Ya know that guy who got drunk and totaled his car, and his girlfriend died?”

“Oh, yeah. Read about it in the newspaper. That him?”

“Yeah. He is in jail now. Won’t get out for some years. And ya know who the girl was?” He made an angry smile. “Tha’ girl he punched.”

“Everybody ends up losing.”

“Got that right. At least I knocked some of his fuckin’ teeth out.”

“Good job. Dentists are pretty expensive.”

“Ya know, I like ye. Every adult told me I shouldn’t have done that, just looked down and kept walkin’. I think ye are the only one that told me I was in the right for pushing down the stairs.”

“I am not a good role model.”

“The crosses in yer house say the opposite, mate. Like, bein’ a priest cancels out the criminal shit ye did in yer past. Clean slate, no?”

Mako just laughed. “When I was a teenager I also fought bullies. I was the…anti-bully, if you will. Was always big. Kids paid me to deal with their bullies, knock them around, break fingers… you know.”

“Oh my god, a high school bodyguard. This is fantastic.” He covered his mouth to stop himself from laughing more. “Did ya go to church and they were like ‘holy shit! Better make this guy a priest! He will beat us up if we don’t!’”

The older man laughed as well, laughter vibrating through his being. It had been a long time since he laughed like that. 

“Anyways! Got kicked outta school. Didn’t bother again. Can’t get into college without school, so I got stuck ‘ere.” He sighed. “Guess that’s what I get for shovin’ people down some stairs.”

“You could finish highschool somewhere. And go to community college. It’s not too late.”

“Me parents said it wasn’t worth it; if I fucked up once, I would fuck up again, so I didn’t bother. Got jobs, kept gettin’ kicked outta them because I kept messin’ up. Not worth shit, honestly. I wanted to get away from this place and said I was gonna, but every time it seemed like I just kept getting more tied to this place.”

“Sorry your parents said that.”

“Eh. Got used to it, ya know. Not like it matters anyways. I’m probably gonna die.”

“You’re not going to die.”

“There is a demon hunting me out there and the police think I killed people. This isn’t bodin’ well for me, mate.”

“I promise to you, Jamie. You won’t die. I won’t let you die.”

He reached over and grabbed his thin hand, pressing it against his. “I promise I will not let you die.”

“Promise?” He stared at him, hopeful with those golden eyes of his.

“I promise you will be alright.”

He hoped that he could keep his promise this time.

\---

“Ya want some eggs?”

Jamison was already getting the pot out. They hadn’t had breakfast and Mako was getting pretty hungry, but he wasn’t really in the mood for handling meat for a while. Jamison said he was going to cook, but Mako really, really, _really_ doubted that.

“How are you going to make them?”

“I was…going to boil ‘em?”

“Soft?”

“You can eat them soft?”

Mako rolled his eyes. “Do you know how to cook with eggs? Eggs in a basket? Eggs benedict? Omelette? Deviled eggs?”

“...I can…boil eggs.”

 _Sighs_. “Make scrambled eggs.”

“Oh…kay. How do I…?”

“Grab butter, put it in the pan. Get it to heat, add eggs, and just scramble them.”

“Okay.”

He heard Jamison move around in the kitchen, grabbing eggs and cracking them. Mako just relaxed on the couch; it was very rare to fuck up scrambled eggs, so he didn’t stand up to check on him. Instead, he grabbed the remote control and turned on the television, figuring that he should catch up with the current news in case there was a new development in the murder case.

There was no news, however. Soap operas were playing, but they were just ending. The credits rolled on the screen while he heard the fizzle of the eggs on the pan.

The jingle of the newscast came up on the television and Mako took a deep breath. He heard Jamison curse a little, but didn’t pay much attention apart from that.

“Good afternoon…”

Mako half paid attention to the screen, his gaze going to the kitchen. “Everything alright?”

“Yeah! Alright! Don’t worry! Everythin’ is dandy!”

“We have breaking news. A fourth murder has happened; the corpse was found this morning.”

Mako’s attention immediately turned to the screen, eyes wide. 

“Today, the corpse of Evan Morris was found outside of his site of work, the pizzeria on Main Street. The twenty-one-year-old was apparently murdered, his throat slit and chunks of flesh missing from his body with bite marks found on the wounds. It is estimated that the young man was killed in the middle of the night, having being discovered at 6:00 a.m. this morning. The time of death has been theorized to be around midnight. “

They showed the picture of the young man, a blond with brown eyes. Before he realized it Jamison was at his side, standing up next to him and staring silently.

“The police have suggested that the murder was perpetrated by the same individual who killed the Fawkes Family and Father Monroe this past week. Jamison Fawkes’ whereabouts are still unknown, but local law enforcement’s primary goal is to question him and bring him to justice.”

Didn’t Emilio Amaro got eaten like that, too? Was it the demon? Why did it attack someone so young?

He tried to stop himself from getting too overwhelmed. Jamison just silently sat down on the couch.

“He was no priest. No religious person.” Jamison stared at the screen. “I-I knew him. Bought weed from him once. Why did it kill him?”

“I…I don’t know.”

“Another murder to add to the list of shit I did, apparently!” Jamison was getting exasperated. “Wait, so it killed that guy and then came here?! That’s so… _ugh_ ”

“It’s eating them. It eats people. Just takes…chunks out of their body.”

“Ugh, fucking hell.”

They remained silent, watching the news scroll across the television screen, but they didn’t pay attention. The silence was thick and uncomfortable. 

“Can I confess, Father?”

“I am not a priest anymore. And-and you won’t die.” Mako’s words felt heavy. Like he could barely believe them.

“I don’t care. I want to confess.”

Mako didn’t have the heart to say no.

“What is on your mind?”

“I don’t want to die.”

 

The eggs were burnt to a crisp, inedible, and they sat in the living room without saying a word.


	9. Tenderloin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The scene was far too familiar to Mako, but he couldn’t tell why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They deal with uncomfortable silence
> 
> HELLO!! what's up!! again im sorry i havent updated in a while- a lot of life things happened and ARE Happening so i've been taking it easy cus IRL i've been super busy!! i hope y'all understand ;w; im sorry. 
> 
> Well, but here is another chapter! I hope y'all like it!!!
> 
> Shotout to my gf trish who is my beta! thank u bby!
> 
> Hope y'all like it!! thank you for reading!!

The oven turned on gently, starting the preheating process. It was old, but it worked. He wasn’t familiar with the new fancy electric ones that connected to your phone or whatever. He was too old for that.

While the oven preheated, he gathered the eggs. He gently cracked them on the counter, letting the contents slip inside the bowl. Once he poured all of the eggs in it, he added heavy cream, poured some salt, and started to whisk.

Mako bit his lip while he did so, anxiousness in the pit of his stomach. He kept his hands steady, however, instead focusing on the eggs. 

After he finished whisking the eggs, he placed bacon in a pan and started to cook it. While it cooked, he went to the fridge to get the remaining ingredients. He took the bacon off the pan and cooked some potatoes he had previously sliced in the remaining fat while adding pepper and salt. 

He threw spinach, garlic, and thyme into the same pan. After a minute, he added the bacon and stirred. The only sounds in the house were of him cooking, the utensils scraping the pans and the food sizzling. 

Finally, he poured the eggs on top of the vegetables, making sure they covered all of it. He cooked it on the fire for about two minutes, then took the pan and placed it in the oven, closing the door.

He waited, his fingers gripping the countertop. In the meantime, instead of stewing, he made a glass of milk, but didn’t take a drink out of it, instead placing it next to him and practically counting the seconds. 

Ten minutes passed since he put the pan in the oven. He retrieved it carefully, placing it on the counter and slicing it into pieces like a pizza. He put one on a plate and took both it and the glass of milk to the table.

He sat down, placing the drink and the frittata on the other side of the small table in front of the anxious figure. He crossed his arms and stared at the plate, then moved his gaze upwards.

The young girl said nothing. Amy just stared at the food, her hand messy and her eyes puffy and red. Mako could tell she wanted to cry but was stopping herself, forcing herself to not shed a tear.

Her lip was split, the blood clumsily smudged and already drying. She had a bruise on her cheek, too. The knuckles on her fingers were scraped, but she still refused to cry even though her hair was tangled and falling down her shoulders in a mess.

She had appeared like this in front of Mako’s door in the morning. It was a weekday. She should have been at school. In fact, she was still carrying her pastel pink backpack, which had footprints on it. She said nothing, so Mako said nothing and made her breakfast. Even if he had an idea of what happened, it seemed she refused to say a thing, and Mako was, honestly, scared of asking. But he had to. 

“Amy.” He had concern in his voice. “What happened?”

“I-” Her voice cracked. She closed her eyes strongly, her eyelids wrinkling and her nose scrunching. She took several deep breaths, refusing to shed a tear. “I fell down the stairs.”

“Did you fall down the stairs or did someone push you.”

She still didn’t look at him. “I fell down the stairs.”

“Then why is your backpack covered in footprints?”

She licked her lips and winced at the motion due to her split lip. She took more deep breaths, looking anywhere that wasn’t at Mako, which was pretty difficult considering how huge he was. 

“Why didn’t you go to the nurse?”

“I’m okay.” He could see her throat move, swallowing surely bloodied spit, trying to contain her tears. “No need to see the nurse.”

“Your lip-”

“It’ll heal.”

He could tell she was absolutely furious, but terrified as well. Her brow was knitted with worry and anger. The way her lips curled at the edges was the same way Mako’s mouth had curled so many years ago when he was beaten up as a child. It was something he was disgustingly familiar with, that intense resentment and anger boiling down inside your chest, sadness and desperation clawing at your throat.

And he knew very well the feeling of wanting to keep it all in. 

“Amy-”

“I’m fine. I just-” She gulped. “Didn’t feel like going to school today.”

Mako nodded slowly.

“Do you know the kids?” 

She said nothing.

“Do you know who it was that pushed you? Down the stairs?”

Very slowly, she looked up at Mako, but her expression didn’t change. She looked far too adult, too much so for such a young girl, bruises decorating her face in pastel hues. Amy knew very well that Mako knew what happened, and yet she seemed to refuse to talk about it, expecting to ignore it all, because maybe ignoring it meant it never happened in the first place. But Mako wished she wouldn’t, because he wanted to tell her that she didn’t deserve that, none of it, and that she was a better person than those kids. 

She nodded very slowly. 

“Do they know you’re-”

Amy shook her head. 

“So why-”

“They think I’m weird. They…don’t like me. I don’t know.”

“I’m going to talk to their par-”

“No!” She looked panicked for few seconds. “Please, don’t. I can handle this. This…this is my issue. My own problem. I can handle all of this. Just for few semesters more, than I’m out of here. I can…I can handle this myself.” 

“Amy-”

“I can handle it myself! I don’t-I am almost an adult. I can handle this kind of stuff myself. There is no need to worry.” She gulped. “I just fell down some stairs anyways.”

Amy stayed there for the rest of the day, studying and doing homework and just silently being there. Mako didn’t press further; he didn’t want to make her feel uncomfortable, but he still felt anxiety clawing at his throat. 

She didn’t cry the rest of her stay.

 

\---

 

Mako took the frittata out of the oven, slicing it into pieces and serving one on a small plate. He took it to the table and gave it to Jamison, but the young blond simply stared at the horizon, lips slightly parted. 

The scene was far too familiar to Mako, but he couldn’t tell why. 

“Sorry about burnin’ the eggs,” Jamison said, looking at the slice of frittata on his plate. “Ya shouldn’t have-”

“It’s okay. You need some food in you. You look like you could break at any minute.”

“I-”

“It’s okay.”

Finally, Jamison took a bite out of his slice and his face seemed to relax. Mako smiled, going to the kitchen and retrieving a slice for himself. They ate together in silence at the table.

A few minutes passed, the silence thick and uncomfortable. The sound of forks scraping on the plates drowned out the rest of the room, at least until Jamison dropped his.

“Are we goin’ to ignore what is happenin’?”

Only about an hour had passed since they saw the news about the new victim. He had been murdered in a similar way to the others. They still had to wait until the next day before they could talk to the men the church sent and figure something out. 

“We can’t really do anything. Just wait.”

It was an uncomfortable answer, but it was the truth. There wasn’t really anything else to do. 

The silence was thick and uncomfortable for a few minutes. Mako’s eyes were glued to his plate, trying to look anywhere but Jamison. 

“Ya think this is happening for a reason? Do ya think I’ve been…y’know, unholy?”

“No matter how many mistakes you made, no one deserves this happening to them, Jamie.”

“But-” He rubbed at his face tiredly, exhausted by his attempt to find an answer to everything happening. “I mean, people get punished for bein’ bad, right?! I never really paid much attention in church, just went a few times when ye were there. Then I stopped ‘cause I thought it was cool, but maybe that’s why I’m bein’ haunted?!”

“This is not a punishment, Jamison. Is there something you think you did that deserves this?”

“I-” Jamison started to remember. “I stole. I stole once. I threw that guy off the stairs like I told ye. I accidentally set fire the chem lab in high school. I-I did graffiti. I broke some windows. I-I did petty shit, I-”

“Being a delinquent and breaking some small laws does not mean you deserve to die.” 

“But what about-” He pursed his lips. There was something very obviously bothering him, as if he had finally figured out why everything was happening to him. 

“Jamison, I assure you, nothing you ever did deserves this. This is…just bad luck. Or something else. You do not deserve to be killed by demons no matter what you think.”

“I’m gay.”

Mako remembered a conversation like that about five years ago. But in very different circumstances.

“I mean-that’s what-that’s what the church says, right? That we are doomed and damned and whatever just, just ‘cause of that. Maybe that’s why-”

“Jamison, a demon does not want to kill you because you’re gay.”

“Then why?! And how do you know?! Aren’t ye a holy man?! Shouldn’t ye know why I am bein’ chased? Why this is happenin’ to me?!”

“Jamie-”

“Maybe that’s why ye aren’t a priest anymore, ‘cause you’re just fuckin’ shitty at it! I have a fuckin’ demon and ye can’t goddamn fucking help me!”

Mako closed his fists in anger, but he didn’t say a thing. He wanted to think Jamison was exhausted and tired, but he was starting to lose his patience as well. He didn’t need this kid yelling at him. 

“I am doing the most I can. There is nothing else I can do.”

“Ye-ye should be able to do something! Ya don’t even know why I am being chased! How do ya know it’s not because-bec-”

“Because I’m gay too, Jamison.” 

The silence was thick. Jamison just stared at Mako without blinking for several seconds. 

“I beg your pardon.”

“You heard me.”

“Is…this one of yer attempts to make me feel better? Or somethin’ like that?”

Mako said nothing, instead just staring up at Jamison. The man’s eyes wide, a mixture of confusion and surprise painted on his face. 

“You aren’t being chased around by a demon because you’re gay. Otherwise, I would have been in the same situation.”

“Well.” Jamison plopped down into the chair. “Didn’t ya say it chased ye the other day?”

It did, yes. But that was more because he kept Jamison stashed away than because of his homosexuality. 

“I know you are attempting to find a reason for why all of this is happening. It’s nothing you did; nobody deserves this kind of punishment.”

“I just want to know.”

“Don’t we all.”

More uncomfortable silence.

“...I’m sorry for what I said about-”

“It’s okay. Just don’t say shit like that.”

“Is that why ye aren’t a priest anymore?”

“What?”

“Because ye are gay. A lot of people ‘ere don’t…like that. Is that why ye aren’t a priest anymore? Did they find out?”

“No. No one knows. No one but…”

Amy.

“…you.”

“How come ye are gay and are into the church and stuff? Don’t they, well, ya know?”

“God never said nothing about homosexual people. If old idiots want to twist His words, then that’s their problem. Not mine.”

“Thought ya didn’t believe in God anymore.”

He shrugged. “Same thing. Never said anything about it in the bible.”

Jamison looked away, in thought. “What about Leviticus?”

Mako raised a brow at him, to which Jamison replied. “I mean-that is the one I remember ‘cause me parents would quote it all the time at the television screen.”

“Then I sure do hope they never cut their hair or mixed materials in their fabrics or ate shellfish. People like to quote it without knowing what His whole deal was. If there is a God, he doesn’t hate you because you happen to be into men.”

“That…It’s good to hear that. Thanks Fa…Mako.”

“The men from the church come tomorrow. Hopefully everything will be resolved then. I’m sure they will be able to fix all of this.” He changed the topic rather abruptly. 

“Or shit hits the fan.”

“Or shit hits the-” He looked up at Jamison. He was biting his nails, looking at the table. He was jumpy and anxious and with very good reason. It was actually weird that Mako himself wasn’t freaking out.

“I mean, things could go wrong, no? It seems everythin’ keeps goin’ wrong. What if tomorrow goes wrong too and I get killed? We all get killed? I don’t, I don’t want to die.”

“I wish I could tell you that it will be okay. But I don’t know.”

Jamison lifted his gaze to meet Mako’s. 

“Mako I-” He bit his lip. He seemed uncomfortable for some reason. “You’ve been too nice to me.”

“I mean, you’re in a terrible situation.”

“Ye aren’t doin’ it because ye were a priest, right?”

“No,” he sighed. “You needed help, I couldn’t leave you to die.”

“No one has ever been this nice to me. Everyone just…ya know. Said I was a stupid freak, hah.”

This was far too personal.

“Everyone painted me as the outcast and weirdo before I even got to show ‘em who I was. So I guess I became that, heh?”

Mako said nothing. Jamison shifted awkwardly in his seat.

“Sorry, I’m acting like this is, heh, confession. I’m just jumpy.”

“I promised what I said, Jamison. I won’t let you die.”

Again the youth started to move awkwardly in his seat. He had finished his slice of frittata, the dirty dish sitting in front of him.

“Thank ye for the, uh…Egg pizza?”

“Frittata,” Mako chuckled in amusement. Egg pizza, that was a new one. 

“I’m…gonna take a shower, alright?”

“Yeah, go ahead. Shout if you need anything.”

Jamison nodded and stood up, leaving his plate and fork on the table as he scampered to the bathroom. Mako sighed, stood up, and grabbed the dirty dishes before dumping them into the sink. He would wash them later. He grabbed another slice of the frittata and ate it slowly, enjoying the taste. 

He heard the sound of the shower going off. He sighed, taking bites out of his slice as he put the rest in a Tupperware container before shoving it into the fridge without much care. 

That day had felt so familiar to Mako, and he knew very damn well why.

He was telling Jamison the truth: he helped him because no one deserved what was happening to him, and now he was tangled in the situation. Yet every time he looked at the blond, how he said everybody painted him as a freak, he could only think of five years ago. 

Mako couldn’t help Amy. No matter how much he tried, in the end it was for naught. He couldn’t save her.

But maybe he could save Jamison.

Mako rubbed his face and sighed. What an ugly thought. He shouldn’t want to save Jamison to set a “score,” he should want to do it because it was the right thing to do, damnit. He didn’t want his intentions to be muddled like this. 

He didn’t know what would become of Jamison after tomorrow. As much as he wanted to believe that things would be cleared, the young man would probably have to leave town anyways. Considering what happened five years ago to Mako, even if there was evidence that Jamison was not guilty, they would never let him forget he was a suspect. 

Mako sat down in the living room, rubbing his temple. When this was over he would be moving out, far away from here as well. He didn’t know where, but somewhere, surely. He was tired of the angry looks and the way people whispered behind his back. He was going to live somewhere where he didn’t have to worry about that stupid bullshit anymore.

He had a good outlook on things. He was sure that tomorrow was going to be a new day and that they would get the help they need. He was very well aware that this was a stupid thing to do and he probably shouldn’t blindly hope for a good outcome, but he felt it was the only thing he could do at the moment, so he allowed himself to hope.

 

\---

 

It was still early, but Mako was feeling really tired. He took a shower after Jamison finished with his and got dressed, taking extra minutes to enjoy the water and pretend that nothing fucked-up was happening at the moment. He slathered his hair in shampoo, then massaged his scalp and washed it carefully. The feeling of the warm water rolling down his face was relaxing, made him feel better. 

After about twenty-five minutes of taking a shower (normally way shorter, but he indulged himself this one time), he dried himself off and dressed himself inside the bathroom; he wanted to avoid the previous incident of almost flashing Jamison. It was still early in the afternoon, so he didn’t put on his pajamas (which honestly were just a t-shirt and his underwear) just yet. 

His hair was still slightly wet when he got out of the bathroom. The noise of the television set in the living room flooded the house with noise, but Jamison didn’t seem to be around.   
Mako approached the couches, only to see Jamison laying on one. At first he thought the young man was taking a nap, but he just seemed to be staring at the television without paying much attention.

“You okay?” 

Jamison stirred a little, glancing up at Mako. He nodded, but just barely. “’m just tired.”

“Okay. I’ll be in my room; if you need anything, shout or come get me.”

“Alright.”

He let him be and went over to the bedroom. He didn’t close the door so as to keep an easier eye on Jamison. Going over to his bed, he sat down on it while rubbing his face. Even with the shower he still felt tired. God, he was so old. 

Amaro’s book sat on the nightstand next to his bed. He hadn’t really dared read it anymore, but he felt he needed to keep it close. He could probably show it to the people the church sent tomorrow, give them an idea of what they might be facing. 

Several religious books were thrown around the place. He should probably read them, try to get more ammunition or something. And yet, honestly, he was exhausted and tired. He just wanted to pretend nothing was happening for a while.

And, well, what the fuck. There was nothing else they could do. So instead of the religious books, he reached over to his favorite romance novel. This one had a rose on the cover, and it was about a young girl from a small town trying to make it in the big city. It was cheesy, cliché, and honestly he should have read something better, but he loved it, and damn, he was going to read his damn book. 

He lay on his bed, the book on his chest while he read. He licked his lips as he started to read the prologue about the young woman, his mind finally disconnecting from everything.

 

He was on chapter five of the book when he looked up to check the clock. It was 9:00 pm; he should probably book it to go to sleep even if it was still early. Reading just made him sleepier, but relaxed. That worked, he supposed. As long as he wasn’t stressed out, it was a win in his book.

Mako sat up, ready to check on Jamison just before he went to sleep, but the blond had beaten him to it; he was already standing in the doorway to the room, his eyes looking at Mako. He seemed nervous. 

“Oh, hey,” Mako greeted him. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah.” Jamison scratched his chin. “Just feelin’ lonely, ya know.”

Mako knew that feeling too well. “Want to talk?”

Jamison went over and sat next to Mako on the edge of the bed. He sighed, ruffling his own hair and looking down at the carpet. “Sorry, ya been too nice to me and I keep freakin’ out, and tomorrow…who knows what will happen tomorrow, no?! Maybe somethin’ real bad will happen and then this is my last day on earth!”

“Don’t think that.”

“It could happen, though! I mean, ye are real nice and sure that nothin’ will happen, maybe not tomorrow, maybe not after tomorrow, but maybe something will eventually happen? And I’ll die. We all eventually die, no?”

“I mean, yes. But-”

“But there is a high chance I die from this, mate. There is a very high risk I will actually die real damn soon. I didn’t…I didn’t think this would happen to me. Not like this. Who ever thinks they’re gonna die like this?”

He placed a huge soothing hand on his back, rubbing. “You’re spiraling. I understand. I am also terrified. But there is nothing we can do but hope we don’t die.”

“You’re terrified too?”

“Absolutely.”

Jamison looked down at his feet. “If it wasn’t for ye I would be dead already.”

“I already told you, Jamie. I just want to help-”

“But no one ever wanted to help me, get it? No one! Everyone always threw me to the wolves and ye could have and…ya didn’t.”

“I know damn well what it is like to be cast away. I couldn’t let that happen to you.” He couldn’t let that happen to anyone. Again.

Jamison looked at him with soft eyes. His one hand crept up to touch Mako’s lingering fingers.

This was too personal.

A little too personal.

Before Mako could say anything, however, Jamison lunged at him. His one hand grabbed at the collar on Mako’s shirt in an attempt to pull the older man against him. 

As their lips touched, Mako’s head was flooded with surprise, shock, and slight horror. He felt his gut twist in either pleasure or awkwardness, something for sure. He was so surprised he didn’t move for a few seconds as Jamison kissed him, his thin lips tugging at his thick ones. 

“J-” He grabbed the youth by the hips and basically pushed him away like one would a puppy. While something that was most likely pleasure pooled at the bottom of his stomach he still had the mind to push him off. “Jamison! What the fuck are you doing?!”

“Ye said ye are gay, no?” He buried his pointy face in Mako’s gut. “Come on. I just. I just need-”

“You’re freaking out. You don’t-”

“Ya don’t fuckin’ know! What ye are gonna say, that I don’t know what I am doin’? That I have no idea what I am gettin’ into?!” he hissed through clenched teeth. “I am an adult and I know what I am doin’. And I want this.”

“You don’t even know me, Jamison. You don’t really know who I am.”

“It ain’t me fuckin’ fault ya refuse to talk about yerself! I ask and yet ye are like ‘oh look at me, I’m super macho, I don’t talk about my feelings.’”

“I-I do talk about my damn feelings. I fucking came out to you, you little shit.” 

“Listen, all that shit doesn’t matter. This is nothin’. This is just fucking, right? Just fuckin’. No fucking…no goddamn stupid feelings or whatever. Just sex! Just two guys having sex. Nothing more than that.”

Mako’s mind was going a hundred miles per hour.

“You want to have _sex_?”

“Listen; somethin’ will happen tomorrow. We either all fucking die or I get chased out of ‘ere. Whatever happens-Something will happen tomorrow and-and I don’t know. Maybe it won’t happen tomorrow, but something will happen, right? I need to-I need to fuckin’-”

“You’re spiraling again.”

“Shut the fuck up! God, why is it so hard to-I may die tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow, or the day after that. I just fucking want to make sure I don’t die without fucking.”

“Didn’t you say you weren’t a virgin?”

“You’re a fucking idiot! You don’t get it. All those fucking-they are nothing. Paid me in beer or drugs or whatever. Ye are the only asshole I know who doesn’t give a shit about that. I need to, I need-” He was exasperated; at this point he was straddling Mako’s hips, but the older man kept him a healthy distance away, his thumbs still pressed against his jutting hip bones. “I don’t want to die knowing I missed the chance to be with someone who truly cared about me.”

This was getting into dangerous territory. Mako was a priest, or at least he used to be one. Did Jamison think he had to do this because Mako helped him? Was he trying to pay him back? Was this some sort of weird manipulative scenario that Mako had accidentally created? 

“We don’t know each other.”

“We don’t have to.”

“This-”

“One-night stand. Come on. I just-” He bit his lip. “I need someone who won’t push me away because I am the freak.”

God.

“What are you worried about?”

Attachment.  
Manipulation. Toxicity. Being close to someone.   
Accidentally ruining Jamison.

Everything.

“I don’t want you to feel that you have to do this.”

“I don’t; that’s how nice ye are. I don’t think this is a ‘payment.’ I am just a greedy piece of shit.”

At this point he was on top of Mako’s gut, his legs spread apart while the older man lay on the bed. Jamison took off his shirt, showing off his skinny chest and his far-too-lithe body. Mako stared at him and the mixture of surprise and shock remained on his face 

“Ya…” Jamison stared at him, pressing his hand against his forehead. His face was flushed. “Ya don’t have to do shit. Ye say the word, I’m outta ‘ere. But if ya think that I don’t know what I’m doin’, then ye are wrong. I know damn well this is what I want. It’s yer decision.”

“Jamie-”

“It’s yer choice. One-night stand. That’s it.”

How long had it been since he had a one-night stand? God, it had been so long. He believed Jamison when he said that it was his own choice; he quickly went through it in his head.  
Mako believed that Jamison felt no obligation towards him, but now Mako was having an internal struggle with himself over whether he should do this.

He was in his right mind. He stopped thinking about Jamison for a moment and thought about himself. 

The demon was also after him. He could very well die. He wanted to think that there would be no consequences to them fucking. Jamison seemed to not care about the emotional side of it. Mako…wasn’t sure. It had been far too long. He had stopped caring about romance and such a long time ago.

But this wasn’t romance. This was sex. That’s it. 

He had gone through so much; a dark part of his mind told him that it was alright. He had permission. He could indulge himself. After all, he could die tomorrow for all he knew.

Mako’s thick thumbs pressed against the hipbones. The way Jamison gasped softly at the pressure prompted Mako to press a bit harder. Jamison started to very slowly rut against him, his jeans pressing against Mako’s bellybutton. He could feel him already hard even through the fabric of his pants. 

“That a yes, Mako?” he softly said.

He didn't say a thing, and soon enough Jamison leaned over and kissed him on the mouth. Mako’s thick fingers unbuttoned Jamison’s jeans, bringing his zipper down. 

“Let me handle it,” Jamison whispered against Mako’s thick lips. Before Mako could say a thing, Jamison took his pants down with impressive dexterity for someone who only had one arm. He threw the jeans to the other side of the room and, soon enough, he slipped out of his boxers.

Mako had to lift his head to look. Jamison was as ready as they came; his dick was basically erect. Thin blond hair was spread above his cock and he was definitely smaller than Mako. 

“Do you, uh-” Mako pointed at the nightstand on the other side of the bed. Awkwardly, Jamison got off Mako to go retrieve the lube and condoms, which Mako remembered he had in a drawer. In the meantime, Mako took off his jeans, throwing them on the pile of laundry. His shirt followed immediately. 

Then he realized he was completely naked. 

Before he could dwell on it, Jamison returned with the bottle and condom. Mako tilted his head.

“Check the date.”

“Still works.” He got flushed as he stared at Mako’s cock, obviously inspecting him. Mako was…a little bit bigger than normal, so to speak. 

Well, way bigger. But a lot of people were into that, damnit. 

His warm lubed hand wrapped around Mako and he had to fight back a moan and, god, his thin long fingers couldn’t wrap around the base. Fuck. He pulled a little, getting Mako fully erect before rolling the condom down his cock. 

After Mako was ready, Jamison sat on his heels and started to open himself up, arching his back and leaving his neck exposed. The image was a lot for Mako, who was fighting his urge to shove the young man down and have his way with him, to take in.

“Gotta make, heh, sure I’m ready enough, eh? Y-ye are bigger than anyone I’ve seen.”

Well, Mako felt a little bit of pride on that. 

Moans spilled out of Jamison’s mouth and he clenched his teeth as he finished working himself up. By this point Mako saw precum leaking from Jamison’s tip and he was wondering if he could even last that long. 

But soon enough Jamison was knee-walking towards Mako. He sat just above his cock and pressed his butt cheeks against Mako’s penis. Mako grasped at the sheets as he felt the hand once again wrap around his base, guiding his tip into Jamison’s hole.

The youth wasted no time impaling himself with Mako’s girth. The moment he was breached both of them moaned loudly, Mako’s hands immediately going over to grab Jamison’s sides. His fingers pressed for dear life as Jamison quickly lowered himself down, throwing his head back as he gasped.

“Fuckin’, feel ya fuckin’ cock up me lungs,” he laughed. “Ye are fuckin’ huge, mate.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s-it’s fuckin’ apples.”

He took a few seconds to adjust and then started to move up and down, fucking himself with Mako’s cock. He leaned over to kiss him and Mako basically wrapped his hands all over him. The silky warmth of Jamison’s insides engulfed his cock. He was big, so it had always been a problem for him to find someone willing to let himself be fucked deep, but Jamison was tall. And eager. And young. And-and-

Oh, fuck. He kept bouncing up and down, moaning and pressing his body against Mako’s chest. The older man started to move his hips up and down to match Jamison, but he felt like it wasn’t enough. He couldn’t keep up with the blond. 

He let go of Jamison to grasp at the sheets, but Jamison just clenched around him (oh fuck oh fuck) and whispered into Mako’s skin.

“Please touch me, please, fuck, please touch me.”

Mako did as he pleaded. He wrapped Jamison in his arms, immobilizing him even though the youth was still on top of him and fucking him as hard as he could by lifting his hips up and down.  
The bed was creaking and moving but Mako felt that coiling heat in his groin. The pleading moans and cries of not letting Jamison go reached his ears but he ignored the words as he fucked him as hard as he could.

Normally Mako had far more stamina, but it had been so long for him that he came sooner than expected. He basically pressed Jamison into his chest, sinking deep into him and coming. He stayed like that for few seconds while he felt the wave of pleasure travel from his toes to the top of his head. God. Fuck. It felt so good. 

He was sweating and panting and Jamison was still around him. Mako rolled over so Jamison was under him. This surprised the youth, his face sweaty and flushed he looked up at Mako, bare and naked.

“I-”

Even though he was softening up he started to thrust roughly into Jamison again. He pressed the youngster into the mattress with his girth. The blond wrapped his arms around Mako’s neck, hooking his legs around his waist as much as he could while Mako hoped he could push Jamison over the edge with just thrusting.

He wailed in pleasure, but Mako felt it wouldn’t be enough. He was going soft already and his hips were getting tired. He was still holding Jamison, but he unwrapped one arm to put between them as he started to pump Jamison.

This got him to scream and wail like an animal. He let himself cry and gasp, moaning and begging until finally, finally Mako thrusted in just deep enough, his fingers twisted in just the right place and Jamison came all over the place. 

He twitched and gasped, his skinny body red and covered in sweat from it all. Jamison’s cum covered their bellies, but luckily enough Mako had a box of Kleenex next to his bed.

Before he said anything else he reached over to it, slipping himself off Jamison so the two could clean each other off. He unwrapped his condom, tied it up, and threw it at the garbage bin a few feet from him, where it landed perfectly. 

This didn’t take long, but Jamison was already climbing all over his chest. Mako rolled them so they would be lying face to face, but Jamison just buried his face in Roadhog’s tits. He said nothing, but it seemed he just wanted to be near him, to be touched. Mako likewise said nothing.

He grabbed the blanket and wrapped themselves in it before sleep took over him. Just before he succumbed to sleep, Jamison mouthed something against Mako’s soft chest.

“Thank you.”

Before he could start feeling the guilt, he fell asleep. 

Perhaps it was for the best.


	10. Loin Chop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _The birds singing outside woke him up. It was still early; his alarm hadn’t gone off yet, but he figured he should get up already since the sun was already out._
> 
> HEY ITS DEMON TIME
> 
> What's up! new chapters of spooky sex fic. I'm getting excited, i really like this fic and I really like the story and I hope y'all like enjoy it HEHEHE
> 
> Shotout to my gf trish for being my Beta! Thank you bby!
> 
> Hope y'all like this chapter !

The birds singing outside woke him up. It was still early; his alarm hadn’t gone off yet, but he figured he should get up already since the sun was already out.

Today was finally the day. The church investigators would come and investigate, and hopefully they could figure out what to do with the demon that was going around killing people.   
He hadn’t opened his eyes yet; he was feeling far too comfortable and, honestly, Mako didn’t want to get up just yet. He wished he could indulge himself and just sleep all day. 

His eyes shot wide open when he remembered what happened last night. Jamison’s unconscious figure was next to him, still peacefully asleep. Mako was suddenly filled with a feeling he couldn’t quite pinpoint. It wasn’t shame. It wasn’t guilt. It was something weird that made him feel awkward. 

It had been a long time since he had had sex with someone. He was okay with one-night stands, but this was different. He had bonded with Jamison. He had the full intention of saving him and not letting the police take him away, but he hadn’t expected…this. 

Jamison said it didn’t have to mean a thing. Well. Okay. It didn’t, then. It was just sex, that’s it. 

He gently got up from the bed, but as he rose up Jamison grabbed his arm and woke up rather abruptly, slightly scared from the sudden movement.

“It’s okay. I’m taking a shower. Go back to sleep.”

Jamison snuggled against the pillows and fell asleep. Mako took the clothes he would wear and went to the bathroom.

By the time he finished showering and getting dressed, Jamison had already gotten up and done the bed in the bedroom. He was in the living room watching the television set, specifically the news. He looked at Mako from above his shoulder and smiled.

“Mornin’.” He was as casual and nonchalant as always, as if they hadn’t just fucked the previous night. 

“Good morning.”

“There don’t seem to be anythin’ new. No new deaths. That’s good, eh?” Jamison reclined on the couch, tapping his leg with his finger. “Apparently a bunch of dead animals are appearin’ everywhere. Seems like they’ve been eaten by somethin’ big.”

“Animals? That’s…odd. You think it may be related?”

“Probably. It seems whatever that fuck is, it eats things. And it ate the animals. So, probably.” 

Mako scratched the back of his head, walking towards the couch. “Jamie.”

The blond turned to look up at him. His golden eyes were fixated on him, and Mako felt something in the bottom of his gut. 

“Today I’ll meet with the people from the church. I won’t tell them that I have you here. I will only tell them what I know about the demon, and that it has appeared here. Do not leave the house. If someone comes, hide.” He took a deep breath. “Hopefully this ends soon.”

“Gotcha. I’ll…wait ‘ere.”

“This will not be done in one day, but don’t worry. I’ll be back tonight and we will talk. Okay?”

“Yeah, okay.” Jamison smiled at him. 

Mako wanted to address what happened last night but…instead he just smiled, nodded, and left.

He didn’t feel like talking about it just now. 

 

The drive to the church was slow. It was still early, so there weren’t many people in the street. He rolled a cigarette into his mouth without lighting it and just rolled it around his lips, enjoying the feeling. He knew whoever would be investigating would set their base of operation at the church, so he would wait for them there.

Mako carried with him the SD card with the pictures of the thing they found, as well as the book with the list of demons and his experiences with the thing. He hoped it would be enough

Mako’s cigarette fell from his lips, heart dropping into his stomach as he saw a white Chevy parked alongside the church’s van.

He was pretty sure it was the Mayor’s car. His day was already fucking ruined. He parked his beat-up truck at the other side, took a very, very deep breath, and got out of his vehicle, tucking the photos in one pocket and the book in the other. He didn’t really want to show them to Mayor Dora; hopefully he could talk with the church investigators alone. 

As he approached the closed doors of the church, he could hear voices coming from inside, but he didn’t bother listening what they were saying as he entered.

Mako was right; Mayor Dora was there along with two other men. The three of them were startled at his entrance, clearly interrupting their conversation.   
One looked far older than Mako, about sixty. His face was sharp and long, bearing sunken eyes and thin, white hair. The other man looked about Mako’s age, red hair going grey. He had a mustache and a beard far more defined than Mako’s. 

“Father Rutledge, I did not know you would be coming here today,” Dora said, staring at him from head to toe. 

“I was told that the church would send investigators. I decided to greet them,” he replied back without missing a beat. The men didn’t seem to be as upset as Dora by the interruption, the oldest one stepping forward to greet him.

“Father Mako Rutledge, it is a pleasure. I am Father Desmond.” He extended his hand. Mako shook it, feeling the man’s thin boney hand.

“And I am Father Theodore,” the younger one greeted him as well. 

“Pleased to meet you both.” Mako smiled softly. 

“I was informed that they would come here to investigate, so I decided to chat with them before they set up here in the church,” Dora chimed in. “Wanted to catch them up with what has been happening these past few days.”

“You mean all the murders that have been happening?” Mako lifted his eyebrow at her, clearly annoyed at her presence and trying to demonstrate it. 

“While we are concerned with the current events happening in this town, I have assured the priests that it is not necessary to have an intervention from the church, for our local police force will deal with the runaway murderer.”

“Ma’am, a member of our congregation was murdered, so we are obligated to investigate the events,” Father Desmond replied softly. “Hopefully we can find the perpetrator soon.”

“Well, gentlemen.” Dora smiled and began to walk towards them. “We can come up with a plan to-”

“With all due respect, Ma’am, first we need to set up before we can start with plans for the investigation. We will come to your aid when necessary and to discuss further.” Father Theodore interrupted.

“...Very well, then. You already have my number in case you need to reach me. Pleasure to meet you.”

She moved to leave, but as she passed Mako she stopped.

“Aren’t you coming, Rutledge?”

“I have some business to discuss with these gentlemen,” Mako was quick to reply.

“What kind of business, may I know?”

“Church business.”

She twisted her mouth. “Very well. Good day.” 

He watched as she exited the building, already feeling better without her presence there. 

“Father Theodore, we must start setting up,” the older man said as they started to walk towards the office of the church. As they did so, he addressed Mako. “Father Rutledge, you used to give sermons in this very same church years ago, right?”

“Y-yes,” he gulped. “I did.”

“We have been told there are special circumstances as to why you are no longer a priest in this church.”

Mako felt a huge weight lift off his chest at not having to explain why he wasn’t a priest anymore. 

“But, since you were the last priest to be appointed here before Father Monroe, did you have a chance to speak with him before he was murdered?”

“No, unfortunately. I spoke with him very rarely,” Mako replied.

“You were the one that discovered his body though?” Father Theodore, the younger one, asked. 

“Yes. I went to talk to him…in fact, for the same reason I want to speak to you,” Mako replied quickly as the men opened the door to the office. It looked pretty much the same as when Mako worked there, but it still had a few of Father Monroe’s belongings. 

“Bishop Carmichael told us about you, that you had suspicions a demon was behind the murders of this town,” Father Theodore said. He seemed to be the most forward of the two, and it surprised Mako slightly.

“I…yes. I believe that the current murders were caused by a demon.”

“Do you have any proof of that?” Father Theodore placed a heavy suitcase on office’s desk and opened it. It had several things inside, including rosaries, a thick Bible, and a bottle of clear liquid which seemed to be holy water. Father Desmond dragged his own suitcase to the other table, opening it and rifling through papers. 

“I have some things that I consider enough proof, yes.”

Father Desmond picked up what seemed to be an old video camera and placed it on the table. “Father Rutledge, we would like to hear your statement on everything that has happened and how you came to the conclusion that it was the work of a demon. We will record you for the sake of the investigation so we can go back to your testimony and analyze it. Is this okay with you?”

Mako nodded. He knew he had to be very careful with his words. He couldn’t let them know yet that Jamison lived with him; protecting a suspected murderer would destroy his credibility and, worse, it would send them both to jail. Whatever the thing was, it wanted Jamison. He couldn’t risk his life.

“Please, sit down.” 

He sat at the biggest desk, in front of Theodore. Desmond brought a chair to sit next to Theodore and placed the video camera on it. He turned it on, a green light activating as it started to record. Meanwhile, Theodore grabbed a pencil, ready to write whatever seemed of relevance. 

“Please state your name and age,” Father Desmond said, loud and clear for the video.

“My name is Mako Rutledge. I am forty-five years old.”

“You used to be the priest in this town, weren’t you?”

“Yes. Five years ago, I stopped giving sermons and retired to live in the woods of this very town.”

“Very well. There have been a few murders in this town lately. Could you please tell us what you know from the perspective of a priest?”

Mako took a deep breath. 

“A couple was murdered in their home recently. Their son has not been found and is suspected to be the murderer. The day the murder happened, I interacted with the young man. He didn’t seem to be in any possessed state, or anything out of the ordinary from what a twenty-year-old would act like. I didn’t think much of the event.

“I was interrogated because I was the last person to interact with him apart from his parents. When I left the police station, I walked home.”

“You walked home?” Father Theodore interrupted.

“Yes. The police came to my home and drove me to the station in their police car, but didn’t bother to drive me back, so I had to walk.”

“What happened then?”

“I walked home. My home is far on foot, so by the time the sun went down I was still in town. That night…I heard voices and weird sounds behind me. I didn’t look back; I had a terrible feeling in my gut, so I ran. The sidewalk was having some work done so, stupidly, I turned into an alley where I found a fence. When I turned I…saw a demon.”

The atmosphere felt heavy, both of the men focusing intently on Mako. Sweat rolled down the back of his neck. 

“Could you describe what you saw?”

“It was like…it looked like a very thing human. Like it was covered with some kind of blanket, but instead of a towel it was a moldy, disgusting flap of skin. It bubbled and twitched strangely, like it couldn’t breathe. It was very tall, taller than me, and had long limbs that all looked rotted and decayed. And it spoke with the voices of the dead.”

“Dead voices?” Theodore asked.

“It-the voice of a young woman, who I know is dead.”

“What did it say?”

“It was…it called for me. I jumped the fence and ran away. It chased me until I made it into the church, where it remained outside. It can’t get inside this place, so far. I spent the night there, and the next morning I went back home without any issue. I wanted to speak to Father Monroe about it, but I was told he would get back to town the next day. I waited, and the next morning when I arrived at his place he was already dead.”

“Do you believe that he was killed by the demon that you saw?”

“I am not sure but…I feel it’s too much of a coincidence. I didn’t feel safe in my house, either. It’s blessed, but I’ve felt strange demonic energy around the area lately. I set up a camera around the woods, just in case.”

“Father Rutledge, you mentioned the demon, but can you assure that it is behind the current deaths?” Father Desmond looked down at some papers he had on the desk. “The Fawkeses’ corpses seemed to be bitten and eaten from. Father Monroe’s doesn’t seem to follow this, but the body that was recently discovered outside the pizzeria appeared to have been killed the same cannibalistic way. Do you believe this is tied to the demon you saw?”

“Yes,” Mako said as he dug in his pockets, presenting Amaro’s book. “I found this book written many years ago. It seems to be a bestiary of demons. One of the demons looks like the one that I encountered. I investigated the author of this book, Father Emilio Amaro. He lived in this very town and was killed in ‘85. His death matches those of the Fawkeses and the pizza boy.

“Yesterday, I went to check on the camera and it took these pictures of the creature. I have very strong reasons to believe that this demon is the same one that killed Emilio Amaro ages ago.” Mako dug into his pocket once again, presenting the small SD card containing pictures of the monster. 

“Very well. We will keep the book and the pictures for further investigation. Is there anything you would like to add?”

Mako thought about it. “There have been disappearances in this town. At least one a year. I thought it was normal, but now…”

“Do you think this could be the work of a cult?” Theodore asked.

“I am not sure yet. I do not have experience dealing with cults or demons, so I can’t tell.”

“They haven’t yet gotten ahold of the suspect of the Fawkes murder, right? Their son, Jamison Fawkes is the main suspect. They haven’t been able to locate him,” Theodore continued. “If there is a cult, there’s a chance he is part of it and sacrificed his parents for it.”

That’s a thought that Mako hadn’t had before. But he was pretty sure Jamison wasn’t capable of that; the kid didn’t look like he could put up much of a fight. Not only that, but the way Mako had interacted with him told him that he wasn’t the perpetrator.

“Do you know Jamison, Father Rutledge?”

 _Biblically_ , Mako thought to himself.

“He went to a couple of my sermons when he was younger. His family wasn’t very religious, very rarely went to church. Recognized him because he is missing an arm. Apart from that…no. Only know he worked as a cashier at the supermarket and that the day his family was killed was his birthday. That’s all.”

“I will stop the recording now. Thank you very much, Father Rutledge.” Desmond clicked on the video camera, the light going off as he did so. 

Theodore seemed to be writing down the things he found to be of importance, his hand over the closed book and the SD card with the photographs. 

“Your testimony will give us a good start for our investigation. We will look through this church, its library, and the office before going to Father’s Monroe’s house. We will be able to determine a plan of action in regards to the demon, too.”

“So…you believe me that there is a demon?” Mako asked a little too meekly. 

“Yes, of course. The circumstances of these murders are far too strange to just wave off as normal killings. Your testimony as a member of the Catholic Church is believed,” Father Desmond said.

“This book is by Emilio Amaro?” Father Theodore interrupted, looking at the book before opening it and turning the pages. “He used to be a priest. Studied demonology, but went off to study his own hypothesis. He is known among the demonologists.” 

“What do you think, Father Theodore?” the oldest man asked.

“I heard varied opinions about the man, some that he was a genius that got killed by demons, others that he was just a nutcase that decided to chase his own cryptids. This…is interesting. You think one of these demons is the ones behind it?”

“I suspect it.” Mako bit his lip. “The one at the end; it mentions eating. The corpses have been eaten. It’s just an assumption.” 

Father Theodore gave the book to Desmond, who examined it. “What are your thoughts, Father Desmond?”

“I’ve heard of Emilio Amaro, too. If this is right and it is a demon this powerful, then there is a big chance that it was summoned. It needs a strong summoning to appear in this realm. We may be looking into a cult.”

“If so, we must tread very carefully. Father Rutledge, have you seen any suspicious activity during the years you’ve lived here? Any signs of cult activity?”

“I don’t know about cults…but I don’t think so. Some people disappear, but I haven’t been in touch with the community for a few years now,” Mako answered.

“Why? Is it the same reason you don’t give sermons?”

“Y...yes. I am not very welcome in the community anymore.”

Both of them stared at Mako intently, but didn’t press the issue. “Disappearances sometimes happen, but that, alongside the murders, may be a red flag.”

“We will analyze this information. Thank you very much for your help, Father Rutledge.”

“Will I be informed of how the investigation is going? I am very concerned about the demon that tried to attack me,” Mako inquired. 

“We will be informing you. You should come by tomorrow morning; we will have more information on what is happening, and hopefully we can come up with a plan on how to get rid of the demon and figure out if there is a cult in this town.”

“Okay then. I’ll take my leave.” He finally stood up, offering his hand for them to shake it. They did so, and Mako left the room.

He was feeling so much better now. Just being able to talk about what happened, and the idea that they would help him; it was such a huge relief to him. He hadn’t told them about Jamison, but it was for the best. He would figure out what to do with him later. It just wasn’t wise. 

He walked through the church, yawning as he did so. Mako was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn’t notice the woman sitting in one of the pews.

“Had a good conversation?”

Mako turned to see Dora, her legs and arms crossed as she stared at him.

“Mayor.” Mako gave a fake smile. “I thought you left?”

“I was going to, but I decided to stay. I want to speak with these gentlemen.”

“About what?”

“It is none of your business, Rutledge. I am the Mayor, and I have the right to speak to them about whatever I want.” She stared at him, her lips curling. “To warn them about certain bad influences, you see.”

Mako felt his gut churn.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me.” She stood up, walking past Mako without saying anything else. 

He saw her knock on the door, then let herself in. Mako was so, so tempted to just try to listen to the conversation, but he knew that wasn’t a good idea. 

Hopefully, they wouldn’t be deterred by whatever bullshit she said. He’d presented his testimony and proof of the demon’s existence 

Well. He wouldn’t get news until the next day. He looked at his clock; it was midday and his stomach was already rumbling. He should get something for them to eat. While they talked about last night. Because they had to talk about last night, right?

Mako was afraid of the intimacy all of this represented. It seemed Jamison was content with just being fuckbuddies, but Mako had to admit he wasn’t sure if he was ready for that kind of thing. He was okay with just fucking, but he also wanted some…something else, he guessed. He didn’t even know what he wanted. 

Or maybe he should shut up and not mention it again.

Decisions, decisions. Mako was already getting into his truck, thinking of buying a pizza until he remembered the place would probably be closed down with the murder of the pizza worker and all. Grim. He felt shitty about forgetting that, but his mind was a bit jumbled.

Burgers it was. There was one of those fast food burger joints near there, so he turned on his truck and made his way there.

The actual restaurant was pretty empty. There was a woman waiting at the counter, but she looked exasperated that there was no cashier around.

“Can you believe it?!” the woman said to Mako, not even glancing at him. “The cashier was here, said she would be right back because she was the only one on shift, and went to make my order. It’s been twenty minutes and nothing! What terrible service!” 

Before Mako could say anything else, she fucked off and left in a huff. Well. Maybe he could get her burgers if she wasn’t willing to wait. 

There was a little bell on the counter, which he pressed. He waited a few minutes, but nothing happened. Mako pressed it again and nothing. He was getting pretty exasperated himself, thinking maybe the cashier went to smoke some pot or something. 

He sighed, turning around and taking his leave.

However before he exited the building he heard a very loud crash of metal and glass in the background. Worried that there had been an accident, he rushed over to the counter, jumping it (with difficulty, damn his knees) and going to the door marked “KITCHEN - AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY.”

“Are you okay? Hello? I heard a crash-” He opened the door without thinking, worried the cashier was injured. 

The burger meat was burning on the grill, broken plates strewn around room. The cashier lay in the middle of the room, her blood spilling onto the dirty tiled floor. The demon was hunched over her, its maw taking chunks out of her side and swallowing them

For one second he focused on the girl. Short blonde hair, blue eyes open, very pale. She looked like-

His mind snapped back into reality. The creature stared at him. It was the same thing that he had encountered before, the thing from the photos. But it looked different; more meat, more mass. As if it was growing and evolving.

It stood to its full height, so tall it hit the ceiling and had to crouch. Blood dripped from its maw and it screeched. 

“ _GIVE HIM TO ME_ ”

Mako turned around and tried to open the door but it had gotten stuck. He tried but it wouldn’t budge. He would have to cross the kitchen. 

“ _GIVE HIM TO ME_ ”

It lurched towards him. Mako evaded it by throwing himself to the side as the demon crashed against the wall, clear liquid coming from its meaty skin. It looked like the pink liquid steaks leaked when you cooked them. 

Mako scrambled to his feet, stepping over more plates as he crossed the small kitchen to the back. While he did so, he knocked over as many things as he could to make it harder for the demon to catch him. 

“ _PRIEST! GIVE HIM TO ME_ ”

There were double doors at the other side of the room. Without risking getting stuck, Mako threw all his weight on them, using his shoulder to open them.

The doors burst open. Mako almost fell on his face, but managed to catch himself. The creature scrambled to follow him. 

Mako basically ran to his truck, still parked at the curb. He raced to it, managing to open the door in time and getting in. In desperation he turned the engine on, ready to get out of there as soon as he could, only for something heavy to land on the hood of his car.

The demon was on the hood, staring at him through the glass as it screeched at Mako.

“ _GIVE HIM TO ME-_ ”

Mako hit the gas.

He accelerated as much as he could, the creature clinging to his truck but ultimately slipping, falling to the street to be run over. He felt the bump, and as Mako got his distance, he hit reverse and hit the gas once more, running the thing over again rather harshly, and when he was sure he’d gone all the way over it, he changed gears and ran over it one last time. 

Out of air, Mako looked through the rear-view mirror to see the creature splattered on the ground, slowly twisting and getting up. However, instead of chasing Mako, it scurried away, perhaps to heal itself. Mako should have run over it again. Fuck.

He drove away, shaking as he processed everything that happened. He was about to be sick.   
Should he go back to the church and talk with the priests? He had no idea what to do. 

There was a pattern. The young woman looked like the pizza boy; short blond hair, white, tall, and skinny. And they both looked like-

Like Jamison. It was hunting Jamison. It was eating anyone who looked like Jamison. It was actively hunting him. 

He couldn’t tell this to anyone. The priests couldn’t know that Mako was hiding Jamison. They would both go to jail and that wouldn’t help.

Maybe Mako could mention that they were similar. That both victims looked similar. Something like that maybe. 

God, this was so fucked up.

He needed to go to the church and talk to the priests.

He drove as fast as he could, and the Mayor’s car wasn’t there anymore when he arrived. Mako stopped abruptly, getting out of his truck and running inside. 

“Father Desmond, Father Theodore, I-” He opened the door to the office, but there was no one inside. Papers and books were disorganized from being used, but the priests weren’t anywhere in sight.

“Fuck…” Well. Plan B. As he returned to his truck he noticed there was a thick layer of blood and some meat on it.

God, he couldn’t drive like that. People would think he was in a hit-and-run. They wouldn’t listen to him if he said he ran over a demon. Mako took his jacket off and tried to clean off the liquid as much as he could, which helped greatly, but now his jacket stank of blood.

He hopped into the truck and turned the engine on, leaving the church. He drove towards Father Monroe’s house, thinking maybe the priests would be there. Instead, a police van was outside, and Mako could see Detective Jonathan talking to some officers. The church van was nowhere in sight, so they weren't there, and he wasn’t about to tell the detective why he stank of blood and sweat.

Fuck. Okay. He couldn’t think of what other place they could be, so Mako decided to drive back home, defeated.

 

As the radio hummed old songs from the eighties, Mako went over what happened in his head. It was daylight and the demon was attacking. Was that a thing they did? So far the only encounters they’d had had been at night. It looked stronger, too. Bigger, taller, made of more meat. 

His head started to hurt. Fuck. 

He arrived home several minutes later. He checked his clock and it was past 2:00 p.m. He felt exhausted from the encounter with the demon, and when he got out of the truck he felt his legs shake slightly. 

He took the opportunity to check on his truck. It was slightly dented on the hood and the front, but not too much. He could say he accidentally hit a trash can and it would explain it, thankfully. It still had some bits of blood and meat, so he grabbed his already-ruined jacket and cleaned it off. 

He would have to burn it, he thought as he made his way inside his home. He opened the door and it was silent inside, no sight of the blond. “Jamie, I’m home.”

“Oh, hey!” The blond got out of the bathroom, dripping with water. He had just taken a shower, and he was wearing nothing but a towel around his waist that revealed his prominent hip bones and Adonis belt shining under the light. “How’d it go?”

“Just-” He covered his eyes slightly, already feeling something hot in his gut. “Get dressed first, okay?”

“Everythin’ alright? Ya look stressed.”

“I’ll tell you, just…get dressed.”

Jamison hummed in affirmation and went to change. In the meantime, Mako went to get a glass of water, try to calm his nerves. 

He felt sweat roll down the back of his neck. His adrenaline hadn’t gone down; instead, he was just hit by what happened today. He ran over a fucking demon, a demon that was eating a young woman because she looked like Jamison, because the demon for some reason wanted to kill and devour Jamison. 

“Hey, I was gonna make some food but I wasn’t sure if ye were gonna bring some, and also I don’t know shit about cookin’ so…”

Mako eyes snapped shut. God he wanted to fuck him. He wanted to fuck Jamison so bad. His heart rate was rising and his crotch was burning. He was terrified but at the same time he felt arousal race through his body. 

Fuck everything else. He almost died today and ran over a goddamn fucking demon. There was no time for being afraid; he couldn’t afford that anymore.

Hands shaking, he went over to where Jamison was. The young man was changing in the bathroom when Mako opened the door.

“Oh, hey mate! Shit, ya gotta use the toilet? Let me just-” He smiled awkwardly, grabbing his clothes with his still-wet arms. “I’ll get outta ya way and-”

Mako grabbed his arm, staring down at Jamison. 

“Uh, Mako? Are ya okay bud-”

He leaned down, pressing his thick lips against Jamison’s. For one moment he felt the young man tense, but then heard the sound of him dropping his clothes, arms wrapping around Mako’s neck. 

His thick tongue penetrated Jamison’s mouth, sucking and licking. Jamison tilted his head back, moaning softly as he let Mako toy with him. One of Mako’s hands went over to the towel and dropped it. Thick fingers pressed against the jutting hip bones, still wet from the shower. This made Jamison squirm even more, arching his back to press against fully clothed Mako. 

He rubbed up and down his side, even pressing his fingertips against Jamison’s nipple and enjoying the sounds the young man made. He separated from him, only to latch his thick lips onto his neck, his hand wrapping around Jamison’s already hardened cock. 

“F-fuck!” he hissed as Mako started to massage his dick.

He enveloped it with his huge palm and started to pull at him softly, a steady rhythm. 

“F-fuck, Mako, I-”

“Shhhh.” He kissed his neck while he continued to jerk Jamison, his exasperated rhythm increasing steadily. 

“Shit-hold on mate, I’m-!” Jamison went stiff, silently screaming as he came all over Mako’s hand. 

He let the young man come back to earth as he lazily pumped him, his own pants feeling tight. 

“A little quick, no?”

“Fuck you. Ya fuckin’ come to me after I’m all showered and wet and hot and ya pull that on me, how ya expect me to last more?!” Jamison hissed, but he sounded content if not a little surprised. “Give me a sec-”

Mako let go of him, running his hands under the sink to wash away the cum when Jamison went to his knees, grabbing at Mako’s pants and about to tug them.

“Hold on,” Mako said, slightly wet hand grabbing at Jamison’s head, petting him but stopping him. “Let’s move to the bedroom, eh?”

“Yeah,” he smiled, still flushed. “Can’t let ya get tired, eh, old man?”


	11. Canadian-style Bacon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> God, Mako was really bad at this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which Mako and Jamison talk, and some guests appear at Mako's home.
> 
> Hello!!!! I know i Just posted the other chapter last week but we're getting at the meat (hehehe) of the story and i am SO hype!! we're getting to the real good bits my dudes. Im soooo excited. So I wrote this fast, excited and pumped!! I hope y'all also like it!!
> 
> Shot out to my gf trish who is my beta! thank you!!
> 
> Thank you for reading and i hope y'all like it !

The floor was quite slippery after Jamison’s shower. Mako and Jamison made out all the way to the bedroom but they had to be careful to not slip, especially with Jamison being barefoot. He almost slipped a couple of times, but was able to catch himself by Mako’s clothes and laugh. The young man was too upbeat, cheerful and full of joy, while Mako just had something clawing at him at the bottom of his stomach.

 _Tell him_ , his mind shouted at him while he continued to kiss him. _Tell him what you saw. That it’s killing people that looked like him_.

Later. He could ignore everything shitty for a moment. He needed to ignore it for the sake of his mental health.

“What came over ye? Didn’t see ya this excited last night,” Jamison laughed breathlessly. 

“Just-” He bit his lip. “Just need this.”

“Ya want me to give ye a gobbie?” He lolled his tongue out. “People tell me I got a big, big mouth.”

Man, it had been a very long time since he had gotten some oral. He nodded, cheeks flushed. 

“Alright old man, lay down.” He jokingly pushed him onto the bed. Mako let him and laid down in it. He hadn’t taken off his clothes yet, but Jamison was already on top of him still naked. 

His hand fumbled with Mako’s belt until he finally managed to get rid of it and throw it to the ground. He proceeded to bring down Mako’s pants along with his underwear. Mako was already half-hard. He gasped softly when Jamison’s hand wrapped around his prick and gave him a few tugs. 

Mako sucked air through his teeth, pressing the back of his head against the pillow and lifting his hips. Jamison’s hand was still damp from the shower, giving him a wet sensation. His jerks were slow and tender, trying to get him hard enough but not getting him off just yet. 

He stood up, going to the nightstand where the condoms were. He grabbed one, Mako sitting up to watch the young man struggle to undo the wrapper with only one hand. Mako grabbed it from him, opened it, and basically rolled the condom onto his own dick. Once done, he laid back as Jamison shuffled a little.

“Ya okay with teeth?” Jamison asked as he started to position himself lower to align his mouth with Mako’s dick. 

“Absolutely not,” he almost yelled. Just thinking about that made his balls retract into his body. 

“Just askin’! Some guys are really into that.”

“Well, I’m not. Don’t.”

“Heard ya, captain.” His tongue lolled out, pressing against the base of Mako’s dick. He trailed it up, his hand softly massaging Mako’s balls. 

Mako held his breath as he felt the tongue press harder, going further up until it reached the tip of his dick. He pressed his thin lips against it, very slowly engulfing the cockhead with his mouth. He remained like that for several seconds, then pulled back for a moment before lowering his head and swallowing him again.

He went deeper this time, his lips going down to take Mako as much as he could. The heat of his mouth felt incredible on his dick. It made his toes curl as he clenched his teeth while making soft wet noises, moaning deeply as the youngster continued to swallow him slowly, careful to not scrape him with his teeth. 

The slow motions started to increase in rhythm, Jamison bobbing his head up and down faster each time. Mako grabbed at the sheets, pulling them all the while he lifted his hips hoping to match Jamison’s speed. He wanted to grab him by the hair and mouth-fuck him, but instead he just kept gripping the sheets. This was equally good. 

He could feel his guts burn in pleasure. One final lick was all it took for Mako to come. The condom allowed Jamison to not gag on cum, still bobbing his head up and down and making Mako’s orgasm more intense.

Mako silently screamed, gasping for air as his orgasm came down. Jamison was slowing down as well when Mako’s prick started to soften, separating from his cock with a trail of saliva following his mouth.

He cleaned off his wet lips with his hand, cheeks red and gaze slightly wild. “Liked it?”

Mako couldn’t really say anything. He was out of air and words so he just nodded silently, heartbeat going down. 

Jamison knee-walked towards the pillows on the bed while Mako sat up to remove his used condom, tying it up and throwing it into the garbage basket. Jamison was already lying on top of the soft pillows and sheets, shiny with sweat and cock half-erect after that. He wrapped his hand around his cock, jerking it fast. 

Mako helped him, wrapping his massive hand around Jamison’s and pulling him. It was quick and dirty, but Jamison managed to come after a few more minutes. Mako reached for the napkins at the nightstand, cleaning his hand with them and giving some clean ones to Jamison to clean his stomach and prick.

“Thanks, mate.”

“Yeah.” 

Now that that was over with, Mako felt far more relaxed, the afterglow of the orgasm still lingering there. Jamison just sighed, crossing his arms behind his head and relaxing as well, maybe even ready to take a nap. 

Everything was calm.

“It’s eating people that look like you.”

Jamison opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling for a few seconds, and then turned to face him. “What?”

Oh, God. He had let his mouth run and broken it in the worst way possible. He was the worst.

“It’s-I saw it today, again. Went to the burger place. The cashier-it was eating her and she looks like you. Tall, skinny, white, short blonde hair. Like the pizza boy. And they both look like you. I think it’s eating people that look like you.”

Jamison’s eyes were peeled, staring at Mako without even blinking for a while. His eyes looked down, then behind Mako, and then at Mako himself, his expression the same. 

“ _What_? And you’re tellin’ me now?!”

God, Mako was really bad at this. 

“What else did they tell you, huh? More info I should be aware of? Somethin’ important ye aren’t telling me for some godawful reason?!”

“I was very stressed, I ran over the thing and-”

“You ran over it? And ya didn’t even fuckin’ tell me? Just a ‘Hey, let’s fuck!’ like no big deal, like everythin’ is okay?!”

“I’m sorry, I-”

“Fuck!” Jamison basically scrambled off the bed, still buck naked, and left the room. For one moment Mako was worried Jamison was going to leave the house, so he immediately got off bed as well, pants and underwear still down to his knees and his cock showing. 

However, instead of going out, Jamison just went to the fridge, opening it and staring at it for a few seconds before pulling out a can of beer. He opened it and angrily drank it. Beer spilled from his mouth to his chin as he attempted to down it in one go. 

He eventually drank it all, but some of it was smeared on his chin. “Fuck.”

“Jamie-”

“Ya gotta tell me when these things happen! Ya can’t just go and run over fuckin’ demons and figuring out that the thing wants to eat me! This is important shit to know! Ya can’t-ye can’t just be like ‘Hey, let’s fuck!’ I’m important. I deserve to know this crap!”

“Yes. Yes, you do. I’m sorry.” Mako’s fingers went through his hair anxiously. “I did a very stupid thing. I should have told you. You deserve to know; it involves you.”

“Damn right it involves me; the fuckin’ thing wants to eat me.” He placed the now-empty beer can on the counter. “Can we just…fuckin’ sit down and discuss things like actual fuckin’ adults? The adults we supposedly are?”

“Yes. Yeah. There is…a lot to talk about.”

“Okay, just…let me put on some clothes, okay?” Jamison shook his head as he made his way out of the kitchen. Mako pulled his underwear and pants on, taking a deep breath.

\---

“How are things?”

“They’re…” The young girl took a deep breath. Bags were under her eyes. She sighed and took a drink from her cup of coffee. “They’re okay.”

“You shouldn’t drink that. It’s bad for your growth.”

“Ugh, how am I supposed to be awake enough to finish so many final projects and study for so many tests?”

It was almost the end of the semester and Mako could tell Amy was getting a little bit exasperated. She had taken many extra classes and extracurricular activities. While she was the perfect student, even she was getting worn out by it.

“Why did you take so many classes?” Mako sipped his tea. 

They were in a small restaurant in the equally small town. They had already ordered their food and their drinks had been brought to them. Mako was slightly surprised they let Amy drink coffee at all, but honestly he shouldn’t say a thing. He had been drinking and smoking since he was like fourteen. 

“Looks good on the college application. So many classes and extracurriculars give me better chances. By the way, you don’t mind if I add ‘church assistant’ as my extracurricular?”

Amy was supposed to help him with church chores and the like, like her mother wanted, but honestly they just chatted, drank soda, and he let Amy do her homework in peace. 

“I don’t have to sign anything, right?”

“Maybe a paper, but I mean, they aren’t gonna investigate you or anything.” She smiled. “Why, you have some dark past I’m not aware of?”

Well, Amy did know that Mako was homosexual and that he was part of a biker gang, but he didn’t tell her that he watched a man die or that he was a criminal. That seemed like something to tell her once she was an adult. 

“Not at all, I just am not fond of bureaucracy.”

“Isn’t that what the church is, though?”

“Watch out, God may come smite you down.”

“He would have done so long ago if he was into that kinda stuff.”

They both laughed. 

The day was lovely, and they were seated beside the sidewalk, watching people and cars pass by. He managed to convince Amy to take a break from her studies to eat something, but it took a lot. Even so, he could see the teen give glances at her backpack, biting her lip.

“No, relax. You have been working very hard these past weeks. You’re going to die if you don’t ease up.”

“Heh, if only!” She laughed and took a drink out of her coffee.

Mako stared at her with great concern, and she suddenly realized what she said. “It’s-it’s humor. It’s a-um, I mean, I’m okay, priest.”

“Um, okay. Just…relax a little, alright? And if you need anything-”

“I can come to you. I know, Father. Thank you.”

They both smiled and continued the conversation while waiting for their food. 

Some minutes later, the waitress finally brought their food. Mako had a nice plate of chicken parmesan in front of him, while Amy had ordered some chicken Alfredo for herself. They ate their meal in peace, talking and laughing at bad jokes. By the time they were halfway done with their meal, Amy looked far more relaxed. 

“Oh, Father!” a woman’s voice called from across the street.

They both turned to the source to find a woman alongside others crossing the empty street to approach Mako. He was already dreading it; he was having a good meal and they would probably try to talk to him about church things. Sigh. 

Amy herself was looking very uncomfortable too, but she just shrunk a little and continued to eat.

“Father Rutledge! Good afternoon. Enjoying a good meal?” the woman who originally called out to him said. Her hair was brown and long, her eyes blue and smile fake. “I was just out with the girls from my book club and we saw you here, so we decided to say hello!”

Being the priest in a small town basically equated to being a superstar sometimes, he supposed. He just smiled and nodded his head. 

“Oh! And this is…?” she loudly proclaimed while staring at Amy, who was trying to shrink into the chair. 

“H-hello…”

“Oh, I know her!” another of the women said. “Amy Mason, isn’t it? Your mother is Alice Mason.”

“Y-yeah. That’s Mom.”

“What are you doing here, eating out with Father Rutledge?” the same woman said, and suddenly all eyes were on the young girl who looked extremely uncomfortable.

“She is helping me with church business. She is my assistant by the suggestion of her mother. This also counts as an extracurricular for her,” Mako interjected.

“Oh, my boy Johnny is doing extracurriculars as well; he needs to get them so he can get into college. That boy is going to become a big shot, I assure you!” a red headed woman said. “Is that why you’re doing extracurriculars, honey? You want to get into college?”

“I- yes. It’s Finals monthnand I’m taking as many classes as I can so I can…I can get into a good college. I want a chemistry major,” Amy said, looking down at her plate and not looking at the women.

“Chemistry? Isn’t that too hard for a little thing like you?” the same woman said. “Wouldn’t you rather take something easier?”

Amy stared at her with wide eyes, but another woman buzzed in before she had the chance to defend herself.

“Oh, you know girls these days, they always think they’re going to go out and become scientists or lawyers. That’s what my Susie said, but then she got married and stayed here! And now she has two beautiful babies! Wouldn’t you rather have a baby, honey? College is very hard for pretty things like you,” a blonde woman said.

“Oh, your poor mother already has enough on her plate without a husband. You want to go away from her too? When you move to college you’ll move out, honey! Are you going to abandon your poor mother? Don’t you think that’s a bit selfish?” a woman with black hair questioned her.

“I- I-” Amy was too shocked to say anything. Mako himself was too shocked and appalled.

“You worry your mom a lot, honey. You stay inside, studying; you should be outside! Look at how pretty you are. Don’t you think you would look prettier with a boy next to you?”

“This is enough,” Mako interrupted rather harshly, getting up from his seat. “This-”

“I-I need to leave.” Amy stood up, grabbing her backpack, eyes red from trying to contain the tears. “I have a lot of studying to do. I have to leave-”

She almost bolted out of there. Mako was about to run after her, but the women were blocking him as they stared and whispered amongst themselves, so he only yelled out. “Amy!”

“I need to study!” she yelled from far away and didn’t look back as she left, leaving her half-eaten food on the table. 

\---

“So they think the demon was summoned by a cult?” Jamison took a drink from his glass of water, staring at Mako.

“Most likely, it seems.” 

“Whoa…and okay. That fuckin’ thing is eating people who look like me. I…I am not sure how to feel about that. This is technically my fault, If I-”

“Jamie, none of this is your fault. This is literally a demon we’re talking about.”

“And you ran over it?!”

“Didn’t kill it, though. I think it’s getting stronger. Maybe the things it’s eating. Maybe…I don’t know. I tried to contact the priests today after I ran over the thing, but I couldn't find them. So I decided to come back here. Will talk to them tomorrow morning and explain my hypothesis.”

“Okay. They said they were good at demons and shit, right?”

“Yes, they have experience with this. They will investigate and come up with a good strategy to get rid of the demon.”

“Ya didn’t tell them about me, did ya?”

“No, no. Of course not. I was thinking.” He scratched the back of his head. “I am not going to tell them. When your name is cleared, you should leave the town and go somewhere else.”

“Go where? I don’t got nowhere to go, chief. Me parents were my only family.”

“Maybe that’s good. You can start over somewhere, where no one will recognize you.”

Jamison took a deep breath. “Too old. I’m a good-for-nothin’ with no education. What can I do?”

“You are still young; you can figure something out. I started over once. You can do it too.”

“Look at where that brought ye, though!”

Mako chuckled a little. Yeah, it seemed like everything was going to shit currently. 

“It’s probably what I’m gonna do, though. Just go somewhere else and start over. I don’t got much choice, eh? Maybe somewhere on the coast.”

“It sounds like a good idea, I-”

There was frantic knocking on the door. Both turned their faces to it, then stared at each other in surprise. 

“Mako Rutledge, this is the police. Open up this instant.”

Mako stood up while Jamison just straight-up jumped from his seat, bolting towards the bedroom.

“I’m coming, I-”

Just as Jamison hid in the bedroom and closed the door, the police opened the front door to the house. 

“Good afternoon, Officer.” He could feel sweat roll down his neck. “Is there an issue?”

“You’re coming with us for the murder of Betty Margot.” They grabbed him and cuffed his wrists.

Mako was shocked; he was about to get away and tell them to fuck off, but if they stayed longer and searched the house, they would find Jamison.

“T-this is illegal, what are you doing? This is-”

“Shut up, priest. You have the right to remain silent. Everything you say will be-”

“I didn’t do a thing-”

“Save it for the detective.”

They dragged him out of his house as another cop moved to enter his shack. “Register the house.”

“What, no, this is my property, you have no right to-” 

“Shut it, Rutledge.” 

As he was dragged away, he saw the room to his bedroom. Jamison.

He screamed at the top of his lungs. “You cannot search my house! You need a warrant! You can’t search my house, I do not consent!”

He hoped he had yelled loud enough for Jamison to hear. There was a window in the room. He could get out. He could-

The police shoved him into the police car. He could escape this. He was big, strong, and he could subdue any of those men in seconds. He knew this. He gritted his teeth and curled his fists. He couldn’t let Jamison be found out. There would be far more consequences if he didn’t cooperate than if he did.

Also, they all had guns and hated him. It was probably the best to just comply. For now.

\---

They shoved him inside one of the dingy cells in the police station. There was a shitty cot against one of the walls with no blanket and no pillow, and there were no windows. After they basically forced him into it, they closed the cell.

As soon as Mako was able to move on his own, he grabbed to the bars and tried to talk with the guards. “I have a right to an attorney. This is illegal, you cannot hold me here! I have done nothing and-”

“Shut up, priest!” a voice said from afar. 

Frustrated, he took a deep breath and went to sit on the cot. He should get a lawyer. The man he hired to help him five years ago had left town, and now the lawyers that were around were part of the community that hated him, so it probably wouldn’t be of use. They should help him regardless, but such was life.

He rubbed his face in frustration. By now they were probably searching his home. He hoped Jamison was able to get out, otherwise they would both be in real trouble. The thought that they had found him terrified him, not knowing know if the young man was safe. Not only that, but Jamison was out there in the woods where the thing lurked. The house was safe and Jamison had his rosary, but even so Mako couldn’t get rid of the awful feeling in his gut. 

Who was the woman they said he killed? Betty something? She probably was the cashier girl that got eaten. Did they really think he did that?

Well, he was in a cell, so they probably did. He couldn’t tell them there was a demon; they already thought he had killed her. Saying it was a demon would just ruin his credibility.

The scenario repeated several times in his head. Not only that, but the possibility of Jamison being out there. What if the demon got him? He had managed to hurt the thing, but what if it wasn’t enough? 

He was feeling sick and dizzy. Time crawled agonizingly by. The minutes became hours and Mako paced around his cell, giving up and lying down on his cot, only to get tired of that and pace around his cell once more. 

After what must have been hours, a police officer showed up and knocked on the cell. 

“Detective Jonathan wants to speak with you.”

They escorted him to the unfortunately familiar interrogation room. He sat down on one side of the table and had to wait again until someone came by.

He thought how Jonathan was the only detective he had had to deal with. He knew there weren't too many, but it was strange how he hadn’t encountered the others. The man sat down at the other side of the room, placing his arms on top of the metal table and looking at Mako.

“Well?” the detective asked.

“Why was I arrested?” Mako blurted out.

“You were arrested for the murder of Betty Morgan.”

“Who?” he answered truthfully. “And you can’t arrest me. It’s illegal. I know my rights.”

“Betty Morgan.” he threw a file to him, to which was stapled a picture of the victim. It was the woman the demon killed. “Twenty-two. Tall. White. Worked as a cashier at the Burger Palace.” He leaned towards Mako. “Sound familiar?”

“Never seen her before.”

“Her mutilated body was found in the kitchen of her workplace earlier today. We have witnesses that saw you entering and leaving through the back of the place, then speeding off. Anything you want to tell us?”

Witnesses? If they had seen him leave, then they surely should have seen-

“Rutledge. Your eyes on me. Why do we have a camera that sees you entering the kitchen, but never leaving? There is a camera in the lobby. We saw you enter, and people saw you leave through the back. After that her body was discovered. A little bit of a coincidence, no?”

Mako grunted, shaking his head. “That’s not-”

“Not what happened? Then how come we have video evidence of it? Besides…I’ve been wondering. It’s weird you’re always there when something happens.”

Mako looked at him confused. “What do you mean-”

“When the Fawkeses died, you were there the next morning. You were the one to discover Father Monroe’s body. And now you go to the burger restaurant, enter and leave the kitchen, and then a body turns out there. Aren’t you a little too connected with these?”

“Bad luck. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time. That’s all.”

“Are you going to explain to me what happened in the fast food restaurant?”

Mako took a deep breath, getting ready.

“Today I went to church. After I left, I decided to eat some burgers. I went to the place, and apart from one woman who complained about the service and immediately left, it was empty. There was no one in there. I was about to make my leave when I heard something crash inside the kitchen. Thinking someone had an accident, I went inside. I didn’t want some kid to break their back while making burgers.”

“Then what did you do?”

“Well, I went inside. There was no one there. There were some plates on the ground, probably what got broken, but there was no one. I called out a couple of times but again, the kitchen was completely empty. So I tried to get out by the employee’s door, but it was stuck. So I left from the back door, thinking maybe the employees were smoking a joint or something in the back and because I didn’t want to deal with the stuck door. I saw no one, so I gave up and got into my truck and left.”

“Is that why you left through the back door?” 

“Yes, the door got stuck. I didn’t try to open it again becaue I didn’t want to break it. So I left there. I wasn’t thinking a girl was going to get killed and I was going to be blamed on it, so I saw no issues doing it.”

“No one else entered the room after. We checked on the cameras.”

“Well, I don’t know, isn’t there a camera for the kitchen?” Mako said nonchalantly.

“That is none of your business. You are a prime suspect; you were the last person seen entering and leaving. No one saw anyone else enter or leave. Is there something you are omitting?”

The demon. “I am not omitting anything. I just went to check if they had an accident in the kitchen and-”

“Why would you go and check?”

“I heard a crash and just did that. It was my first instinct to help. I’m sorry I didn’t walk away even though I thought someone may have hurt themselves.”

“Oh, you’re such a good person, aren’t you?”

“I did not kill that woman!” he almost screamed.

“Well, priest, we searched through your house to see if there was something suspicious there.” Mako was very, very glad he had shoved the dirty laundry in the washing machine, and with it the blood-soaked jacket. He had rinsed it and gotten rid of the juice as much as he could, then put it in the laundry. 

“And? Am I supposed to be intimidated by this?”

“Do you live alone, Father?”

“Of course. What about it?”

“It is pretty interesting we found some clothes that aren’t your size and some used condoms in the garbage basket.” Mako felt red in the cheeks. “Something you want to tell us, Father?”

“You need a warrant to go through my house. This is illegal, I-”

“Honestly, no one cares. You think anyone will care if we mistreat you a little? Everyone hates you and you know it. Now, do you have an answer?”

Mako took a deep breath. “We used to have programs in the church where we gave clothes to the homeless youth. Don’t you remember, Detective? I specifically remember you being a part of that program.”

“And you still have the clothes?”

“After you people fired me from being a priest, I kept some things. I’ve been doing some cleanup and I realized I still have some of those. I was planning on donating them; I have no use for them. As for the condoms, can’t a guy jerk off in peace?”

“I don’t know, Father. What I believe is that you have had some escapades with some people around here. Maybe Betty was attractive to you. Maybe you decided to feel young once more. So you have a thing with her. You have sex. She goes to your house and has dirty escapades. Then you get tired of her, so you go to her workplace when she is alone and kill her, then leave. Does that sound familiar to you?”

“I did not kill that woman and I did not have sex with her.” 

“We’ll see about that. Is that all you have to say?”

“I have nothing else to say. I am not guilty.”

“As I said, we’ll see about that.”

The detective took the file with Betty’s photo in it and left Mako to stew in the interrogation room. He took a deep breath and put his face between his hands. There was no noise in the room apart from the soft humming from the fan above his head. 

 

Several minutes later he was escorted back to his cell and rudely shoved into it. He gritted his teeth, but said nothing. “When can I go home?”

“You killed that woman, so never.”

“I didn’t kill anybody.”

“Yeah, yeah. Goodnight, Father.”

The cops left, leaving Mako alone in his cell once more. He didn’t even know what hour it was, but he was getting exhausted. 

Surely if Jamison had been found, then they would have told him about it, right? They would be all in his face about it. So, surely, Jamison was okay. He managed to escape. And that way he would be able to hide from the demon tonight. He hoped.

But what if Mako was incarcerated for longer? Jamison would have to save himself and find some way to protect himself from both the police and the demon. He didn’t do it, but he wondered if they were petty enough to incriminate him even if he was obviously not at fault.

Something that bothered Mako was that Detective Jonathan had said there were witnesses; if there were witnesses, how come he didn’t mention the demon? He ran out of the place with the demon behind him and then ran over it with his truck, but this wasn’t mentioned. Whoever had seen him exit the restaurant should have seen it. And yet…

He was powerless in there. There was nothing he could do but wait and hope that they would free him in the morning.

\---

“Amy?”

There was sound coming from the other side of the door. Some huffing and frantic steps. 

“As soon as she came home she cooped herself in her room and won’t come out, I-I thought you might help her, Father Rutledge. Make her calmer, please.”

Mako knew very well why Amy was so upset. It had been about fifteen minutes since the scene in the restaurant happened. He was already making his way to her house when her mother Alice called him, asking him to come and help her calm down. 

“She has been so tense and busy since finals started. She is paying too much attention to school. It-it worries me, Father. I tell her she should relax, she should stay here and relax a little, try to learn how to take care of this house, but she keeps saying she wants to go to college! Away from here, from me! She says she wants to be a scientist, but that’s too hard for her, don’t you think?”

“Ma’am, she is a very smart individual. She is working very hard for school right now. That is probably why she is exhausted.”

“Could you please talk to her, Father? Make her calm down?”

“I’ll try.”

He softly knocked on the door. “Amy, it’s me. Father Rutledge. Can I come in?”

He heard some soft cursing from the other side. “...Yes.”

Mako softly opened the door and made his way inside, closing the door behind him.

The room was littered with books, homework, maps, chemistry books, and papers. It was messy but not disgusting. Amy was pacing around the room with two chemistry books in her hands, reading something from one book and then going immediately to the other. The books themselves had stamps from the library. 

“Hello.”

“Hello,” she said breathlessly, still pacing around and reading the books in her hands. 

“I came here because-”

“My mother got worried about me. I know.” 

“I am worried about you, too.”

She lowered the books for few moments to stare at Mako. “Oh, are you going to tell me that I’m too pretty and too silly for big hard college, too?” She lifted the books once more and kept reading. 

“No, Amy. You are brilliant and I know you will do great in college. I’m worry about _you_.” 

She continued to pace, her face turning to Mako but her eyes staying at the books she was reading. 

“What those women said was awful. Don’t listen to them.”

“How am I supposed to not listen to them when literally everybody tells me the same thing? My own mother urges me not to go to college, and certainly not for such a ‘boyish’ subject.” She bit her lip. “Everyone in school hates me because I’m different. Everyone outside of it hates me because I’m not doing what I should be doing.”

“Amy, I’m so sorry. I wish there was some way to help.”

“No, no, I…” She finally lowered her books enough to look at Mako. “I really appreciate it, Father. I have someone to actually talk to. That’s, that’s enough. I’m sorry I’ve been so difficult. I’m just…I’m just stressed-out.” 

She sat at the edge of her bed, putting the books beside her and rubbing her eyes. Mako followed her, sitting next to her and sinking the mattress considerably. 

“If you ever need someone to talk to, remember I am here.”

“Thank you. I just…I’m very close. Next semester I’ll start sending applications, and... “ She laughed. “It’s exciting, but terrifying, too.”

“I understand.” He patted her shoulders and she visibly relaxed a little. 

Something colorful caught his eye, something just below his feet. When he looked down, he saw a…rainbow flag?

“Hey.” He leaned down to grab it, pulling it out from beneath some biology books. It was a pride flag. “What-”

“Oh-oh!” She grabbed it from him and quickly scrunched the already small flag into a little ball. “I-I made it…I made it myself. Sorta. I mean-, I know it's stupid and-and I need to hide it but. I feel like…it makes me feel better. A bit. Even if it's hidden because…it’s mine, you know? I made it.” 

Mako smiled softly. “I understand completely. Just be careful, okay? You know how some people can be.”

“I… yes. Hopefully everything is better in college.”

“There will always be shitty people everywhere.” He pointed a big finger at her. “But you need to realize that there are good people who will love you for who you are. That is the kind of people you need to treasure and keep close.”

She giggled. “Thank you. I…I’m really glad you keep talking to me.”

“Hey, we’re friends, right?”

She smiled softly. “Yeah. We’re friends.”


	12. Back Ribs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“God bless your soul, Mako Rutledge. May God forgive your sins.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We learn what happened to Amy Mason.
> 
> Hello!! What's up?
> 
> I havent updated this fic in a while but godddd i've been waiting for this chapter in particular for a LONG time. This fic is v dear to my heart, so hopefully you enjoy it.  
> My beta, Trish, is on a trip rn, and also won't be available for the rest of the week and a while more So I tried to do the beta myself so uhh I TRIED, bear with me haha!! 
> 
> Thank you for Reading and I hope you like it!
> 
> THIS CHAPTER HAS TRIGGER WARNINGS FOR: Homophobia, Hate Crimes, Death of a Teenager. Religion induced homophobia. Physical Abuse. plz be safe !!!

The phone rang, waking him up from the accidental nap he took. He opened his eyes, and noticed the book he was reading was now down on the floor. He had fallen asleep while he was reading, and it was already late. It was after ten, he should get ready to go to sleep proper.

The phone rang once more, interrupting Mako’s thoughts. He sighed and grabbed it, rubbing his eyes with his free hand.

“Good evening, Priest Rutledg-”

“Father!” He recognized the voice. It was Alice Mason, Amy’s mother. Normally she didn’t call late, and she also sounded a little frantic.

“Mrs. Mason, good evening.” Mako was trying to not yawn.

“Father, I am so sorry to call you this late. But I am very, very worried for Amy.”

This woke him up. “What’s wrong?”

“My neighbor, she gave me these books that talk about warning signs in children.”

“Warning signs?”

“About… about horrible things, father.”

Mako was pretty sure he knew where this was going but he had to make sure. He, after all, shouldn’t make assumptions.

“Like?”

“Like… homosexuality.”

There it was.

Mako covered the phone and took a very exasperated breath. He had to be very, very careful of his choice of words. 

“Ma’am, I assure you, your daughter is not… an homosexual. She is going through a lot of stress now, from school. She already was slightly different from other children, this is normal. You should not worry about this.”

His heart hurt. He wished he wouldn’t have to say this, and he wished Amy could just be whoever she was without worrying about… this. 

A sigh came from the other side of the phone. 

“Alright… Father, I trust you. I trust you… Thank you for calming me down.”

“You are welcome, ma’am.”

He hung the phone, and rubbed at his face with his palms, taking a deep, shaky breath.

\---

He couldn’t sleep at all. 

Mako sat, his back against the wall. His eyes stung, but he couldn’t get himself to sleep more than few minutes. As soon as sleep starting to take over, his eyes jolted open, the memory of Jamison in his mind. 

The police hadn’t found him, obviously, but what if the Demon did? He had the rosary which should help, but still. He hoped that he was able to get into his house again- the demon couldn’t get close. It was blessed. If he got into his house, then he would be fine.

Mako cracked his back. But what if he didn’t make it into the house? What if he wasn’t safe? What if the demon found him?   
No, no. Jamison had been able to climb a tree, one armed. He would have made it into the house. He… he had to. He had to. 

He had no clock, the only indication of time passing was the little window on the top of his cell. The moonlight faded, for sunlight to slowly creep into his cell. He hadn’t slept at all, and no one had talked to him, either. He hoped that they were sane enough to let him go after it was proven that he obviously did not kill that woman, but he didn’t have his hopes up.

“Father Rutledge,” a voice called. Mako was half asleep, but the voice woke him up.

He lifted his head to see who it was talking, and he found the two priests from the previous day, Father Desmond and Father Theodore. They looked… upset. 

“Good morning.” Mako rubbed his face. “I… apologize for the circumstances I am in, but they uh- I am a suspect in a murder case.”

They said nothing, and just stared, hands behind their backs.

“I didn’t… it is just a misunderstanding, I can assure you.” He could feel their eyes boring into his skin. “It’s… I didn’t do it.”

“Father Rutledge,” Father Desmond said, in a chilling voice. “We need to speak to you, immediately.”

“I um,” He looked around his cell.

“Now.”

“Sure, okay. What is… what’s wrong?”

“This is not the first time you have been involved with the police, is that right?” Desmond said. Mako scratched his neck.

“...Unfortunately. Yes. but last time-”

“It was Amy Mason, right?” Theodore said with a hiss.

“Yes. Yes it was. It was about… it was ruled that I had nothing to do with it.”

“Yes, so the justice system declared, but we all know that the justice system is very flawed indeed.”

Mako felt rage in the pit of his stomach.

“I do not understand why this is relevant to anything.” Mako stood up, cracking his tired bones. “You are here to investigate the claims about-”

“We have decided that these claims are bogus and that a person of your… _character_ is not to be trusted.” Desmond interrupted.

Character?

“Excuse me? What is that supposed to mean?”

“We spoke with the Mayor, she was concerned there were some… issues with you.” Mako felt his stomach drop. “And now, we agree with her.” Theodore, the youngest one, was the one to speak now.

Mako got close to the bars, getting exasperated. What was happening? What was going on?

“Stop talking cryptic. Say whatever you want to say.” He grasped the bars with his hands, getting close to where Father Theodore was standing. “Tell me, with your real words what is it that you really want to say, Father. Or do they no longer teach that in catholic school?”

Father Theodore seemed hesitant, so Father Desmond was the one to step up. 

“We have reasons to believe you are affiliated with the homosexual lifestyle. Which had something to do with the Mason case.”

He could feel his insides twist in fire, his blood running hot as his jaw clenched. “Is that so. Who is it that told you so?”

“The Mayor.”

Dora.

Mako’s teeth were gritting, and he was grasping the bars so tightly he thought he would break them. He had a very hard time trying to calm himself down enough to speak.

“Even if that is true, and despite what happened with the Mason case- which, once more I must say, I was found innocent, what does that have to do with your duties here?” Bile spilled out of his words. “You came here to investigate demon sightings. Is that not right?”

“Yes, if we were to take _your_ word for it.” Those words were full of such venom, it enraged Mako. 

“Is my word not enough?” He hissed.

“No.” Desmond said, staring at him point blank. “It is not. And it will never be.”

Mako couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Let me get this right. I give you proof that there is a demon fucking around, there is a dead priest and dead people being eaten, but you will ignore all of that because I am gay. Because I happen to like men. You will let this go and pretend everything is okay just because of that?”

“The words of the twisted should not be catered to.”

Mako pressed his face against the bars forcefully, making them clang. It surprised both Desmond and Theodore, who jumped back in shock, visibly shaken. 

“I am not twisted, and I am not a pervert. I am a fucking human being like you are. If you leave you will let people die and that will be your fucking fault. I thought holy men were supposed to help others, not abandon them just because they’re homosexual. Is this what the church has been preaching these days? Acceptance only for the equal?” He was so angry, he wanted to spit at them. “You are the reason why everybody fucking hates the church.”

“God bless your soul, Mako Rutledge.” Desmond sneered at him, after calming down. “May God forgive your sins.”

They started leaving, but Mako just slammed on the bars forcefully. “I don’t need your forgiveness! I don’t fucking need your pity you goddamn fucking vultures! You will let these people die! You fucking animals!”

Mako was seeing red. His jaw hurt, and so did his face and hands. He was absolutely furious, grabbing at his face and pulling at his hair forcefully.

“FUCK!” He screamed, kicking at the bars several times until his foot started to hurt, sliding down to the floor as he clutched his head in pain, trying his hardest to not start sobbing.

\---

“Your mom called me last night.”

Amy was very quiet. She was silent as she read her books and wrote notes. Dark bags decorated her eyes, and she looked sluggish. Mako could tell she wasn’t sleeping properly. 

“What did she say?” Amy didn’t look up from her book.

“She, um. She is worried. The neighbor gave her some books and she is… worried you are becoming an, uh,” Mako took a breath. “Homosexual.”

This caught her attention, and she basically dropped her book on the table, making the silverware jump a little. Luckily they were at Mako’s house, so they could talk about this openly without anyone hearing.

“She… told you that?” She looked extremely anxious. “God, what the hell? How did-”

“Calm down, she already always thought you were ‘strange’... I assured her that whatever makes her think that, is because you have been busy with school.”

She dragged her hand across her face. “God. I hate this, so much. So so much. I’ve been- I’ve hid everything. I mean, I haven’t had dates, I barely talk to her- how does she come to that-”

“You know, it’s probably because you’re ‘different’ that she thinks that you’re, well, a lesbian.”

“Why! I mean, it’s true, but that’s… that’s so stupid. I’m just me. Do I have to pretend I am someone else so she thinks I am straight?” Amy took a deep breath. “Do you… do you think that, if I told her… she would be upset?”

“She… she sounded alarmed. Worried. Worried the way someone who wouldn’t be… understanding about it would be.”

Mako’s heart throbbed when he saw the disappointment in her eyes. 

“So, not coming out to her, huh. At least not until I can.” She took a deep breath. “Did you ever come out to your parents?”

“Yes. It did not go well.” Mako was truthful. There was… a lot of screaming, shouting, and him getting kicked out of the house. 

“I want to tell her! I do. But… when I’m at college and she can’t kick me out or anything, you know? I think that’s the first thing I will do when I start college. I’ll just publically come out.” She waved her hands around. “Like, hey guess what, I’m a lesbian, bye!”

“Amy-” He interrupted her, catching her attention. “Be… be very careful, okay?”

“...I will. Don’t worry Father, I will. If anything happens- Not that anything will happen because I’ll be careful, of course- but if something did happen, I can come here and crash for a while, right?”

“Of course. You know you are always welcome here.”

“Thank you, Father.” 

“Call me Mako.”

She smiled. “Thank you, Mako.”

\---

“Wake up!”

Mako wasn’t asleep. He was in the corner of the cell, sitting with his head low. One of the police officers banged on his cell bars, yelling at him. “I said wake up!”

“I’m awake!” Mako yelled, frustrated. It has been an hour or so since the Desmond and Theodore basically told him to fuck off, and he was just starting to calm down. 

He walked over to the cop, who was opening his cell. Behind him was the Detective, staring at Mako.

“Well?” The priest asked, staring at the detective as he was let out of his cell.

The detective took a deep breath, tired and pissed off at himself (or maybe at Mako?). 

“You are free to go.”

“I thought you were oh so sure I killed that woman?”

“The wounds were far too brutal to be made by humans. Unless you have claws and fangs, you are not guilty.”

The cop closed the cell, and started to escort Mako outside, but not before the detective told him one last thing.

“We will keep an eye on you.”

Mako said nothing. 

No one talked to him on the way out, and as soon as he was outside of the police station, the officer that had escorted him went back inside without a word. They must really hate him by now, but so what. Mako hates himself too, so whatever.

Lucky for him there was a taxi right outside the station, the driver smoking a cigarette and reading a magazine. He wouldn’t have to walk all the way over his home. 

“Hey,” He went over and knocked on the window. The taxi driver looked at him up and down, but made the motion to enter the cab.

Mako squeezed himself to the back seat. “Where to?” the taxi driver barked as he placed the magazines on the co-pilot seat, cigarette still in his mouth. 

“To the trail towards the woods. You know where, right? Right after Lilly Avenue.” 

“Gotcha.” He turned on the engine, and started driving. 

Mako looked at the road over his shoulder. As they were driving away from the police station, Mako saw Mayor Dora outside of the station, staring at him as they drove away.

Mako didn’t stop staring until she disappeared in the horizon.

 

There was a lot in his mind, and he didn’t know how to deal with it. Father Desmond and Theodore had left him to rot. They would have to take this matter with their own hands. He knew nothing about exorcism, but maybe he could just… kill the thing, right? Shotgun to the head?

He was far too tired to think of actually good ideas. First things first: Jamison. He had to make sure he was alright. 

But he was alright. He had to.

They hit a small bump on the road, and Mako hit his head on the roof of the car. It hurt a little. “Sorry,” apologized the driver.

He thought about Amy. He couldn’t… he couldn’t help her. He ultimately failed her. But maybe he can help Jamison, maybe he can save him, maybe he could protect Amy-

Another bump on the road.

No. This was very dangerous thinking. He wanted to help Jamison because the poor kid was in a really horrible situation.   
Though a small part of him wondered, if he really wanted to help him, or wanted to make up for what happened to Amy.

He couldn’t let that happen. He couldn’t think of Jamison as a “second chance”- he had to protect him not because of his self hatred, but because Jamison needed help.

“Alright, we are here. Want me to drive you all the way to your house?” The driver said as he pulled over just next to the trail.

“No, no. It’s okay, thanks.”

He had just enough spare change to pay for the fare. The hike to his home wasn’t that long, and it gave him even more time to think. 

Fuck. The priests kept Amaro’s book, too. He wondered if they took it or left it behind at the church. He would have to check, but honestly it wouldn’t do too much good now. It didn’t have much information. 

They needed holy water, more rosaries…

He also needed to deal with Dora. Just thinking about Mayor Brown made his blood boil. God he was so tired.

He finally made it into his house. His garbage cans were tilted over, and there seemed to be some garbage around, but his house looked… normal. The door was closed, at least.

Cautiously, Mako opened the front door and slipped inside. 

Everything was a mess. The cops had basically turned the house upside down trying to find something to pinpoint on Mako. Ugh. But that wasn’t important.

“Jamie?” He said loudly. “Jamie, I’m here.”

Fearing for the worst, he quickly made his way to his bedroom. Jamison was there, asleep while sitting, his back against the bed frame, Mako’s shotgun just at his side, fingers lingering over it. He had obviously tried to guard himself, but fell asleep. 

Very, very careful to not wake him up and get himself shot, Mako reached over and took the shotgun away from him. As he did so, Jamison jolted awake and was trying to grab it, frantic, clawing at Mako’s arm.

“Jamie! Jamie, it’s ok! It’s me!” He grabbed the young man firmly, trying to calm him down. The blond stared up at him, still in shock.

“Oh. Oh! Mako, you-” He took a deep breath and smiled. “You’re here. I didn’t expect- I mean, I-”

“It’s okay. I’m here. They couldn’t pin the murder on me.”

“So they let you go?! That’s great! That’s-” He looked exhausted, too. He probably couldn’t sleep either, trying to protect himself.

“What about you? What happened after they took me away?”

“I, well. I heard ya shoutin’ that they were gonna search the house, so I managed to just jump outta the window, and climbed a nearby tree as fast as I could. I was still very close to tha’ house so i made no noise, though. They searched the house for hours. It was about to get dark, but they just left before the sun set, and I managed to sneak inside once the house was empty.”

Oh, thank God. “Quick thinking, getting up that tree.”

“Yeah, yeah…” Mako could see there was something on Jamison’s mind, but he couldn’t tell what. 

“I have… terrible news, however.” Jamison looked up at him, worried. “The… the priests that were going to help us won’t. They are leaving.”

“What?!” Jamison scrambled up, trying to stand up but tangling himself on the sheets of Mako’s bed. “Why?! What- I-”

“They… found out that everybody hates me. And they decided to believe them. So they will leave.”

“Is…” Jamison blinked, and looked down, evading Mako’s gaze. “Is this about what you… what happened? All those years ago, that made everybody hate you?”

“Yes.”

Jamison remained silent, he continued to stare down. “Is this about Amy Mason?”

Mako’s blood ran cold. 

“How-”

“It is, isn’t it?” Jamison bit his lip, still refusing to look at Mako.

“How do you know-”

“When I was on the tree. The cops were searching and talking. They… they said, ‘Do you think he killed her?’, and the other one said, ‘Maybe, remember what happened to Amy Mason’, and the first one replied, ‘he wasn’t found guilty, though’. After that they just left.”

Mako sat in stunned silence. Jamison finally lifted his gaze, staring at him intensily. “Is that why? Is she the reason they left?”

“Y-yes. In a way. It’s because… because of what happened.” Mako felt a lump in his throat.

“What happened to her? What did you do? Why-” Jamison was stumbling with his words.

“I don’t want to talk about-”

“Well, I _don’t_ want to talk about it either, Mako!” Jamison shouted. “But whatever happened, it’s the reason they don’t believe you! The reason they left us to rot! So I think at this point is pretty fuckin’ important for you to tell me what’s happening!”

He was right. Mako didn’t want to admit it but he knew that he had to talk about it. It had costed them, so he had to. God, he had to. 

“I… Okay. I will tell you. I-”

“Mako-”

“I have to. I…” Mako dragged his hands down his face, shaking.

“Amy Mason… she would be your age, now, actually. She was… brilliant. Smartest kid I’ve ever met. She was a highschool student, and her mother was worried about her, that she was ‘different’...”

Jamison stared at him intently, not saying a thing.

“She is dead. Died five years ago.”

“Is.. is that what they were talking about?” Jamison bit his lip. “Did you kill h-”

“I did not kill her.” 

“They think you did.”

“She… I was her friend. She talked to me. Amy told me what she dreamed, what she wanted to become. She confided in me, she…” Mako took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. “I couldn’t help her.”

“Mako, what happened to her?”

“I watched her die.”

\---

It was late. Mako was driving his beaten up truck, driving Amy home. It was a chilly Friday night, and the fireflies were decorating the night. 

“Any plans for the weekend?” Mako asked Amy as they approached her house. 

“Not really. Trying to get a last minute crunch. I have some finals next week.”

“Try to sleep in. Relax.”

“I can’t relax in this house,” she whispered. “Mom has been getting more and more… paranoid. She has been really aggressive lately.”

“Is there anything I can do to help?” He asked, in earnest.

“No, no, just…” She sighed. “Just letting me crash at your place to study?”

“Sure. You are always welcome in my home, Amy.”

“Thanks, Mako.”

They pulled over to her home. She hopped off the truck and waved goodbye, backpack on her back. Mako waved back, and waited until she got inside of her home before he drove away.

There was something that scratched at the back of his throat. But he ignored it. Anxiety accumulated at the bottom of his belly, but he ignored it too. He figured he was just anxious for random reasons, like one sometimes is. 

Mako got home, drank a cup of shitty tea, and went to sleep, hoping that those feelings would go away in the morning.

 

The ringing from his phone woke him up. Mako jolted awake, heart pounding hard against his chest as he went to answer it. Normally, he would ignore it, specially on a Saturday morning, but he felt like he _had_ to answer this call.

He picked up the phone.

“Good-”

There was hysterical screaming and sobbing in the background, and Mako felt a chill go down his spine. 

“Father-” It was Alice. “Father, please-”

“What h-”

“Father You have to help me! Amy- she-”

“I’m on my way.”

He immediately hung up. He dressed up as fast as he could, basically sprinting to his truck. He wasted no time, turning the engine of his truck and going over the speed limit to reach Amy’s home.

So many things went through his head. He didn’t care about Alice- he cared about _Amy_. Did something happen? Was she okay? Mako felt his heart on his throat. 

The moment he pulled over to the Mason residence he jumped out of his truck. He saw the neighbors staring at him as he made his way inside the house, and the first thing he found was a very altered Alice. 

“Father, thank you so much for-”

“What’s happening? What’s wrong, where is Amy?”

“Father! You were wrong. I- I found this last night in her room!” She pulled out the rainbow flag Amy had showed him before. “I found this, and I confronted her about it!”

Oh. Oh no.

“She- she told me. That she- she has sinned, Father. I don’t know what to do. I- I tried so hard to raise her, and-”

“Where is she?”

“We discussed all night, we screamed all night, she screamed back at me and-”

“Where is Amy?”

“In her room.”

He ignored whatever Alice said after that. Amy was his main worry. He had to get her out of there, now.

He tried to open the door, but it was locked. 

“Get out! Don’t get near me!” She screamed from the inside.

“Amy, it’s me, Mako-” He forced the door open, somehow not breaking it. 

Inside, Amy was shoving things inside of her backpack, closing it and quickly placing it on her back. Her hair was wild, eyes bloodshot red. There were scratches and bruises on her face. It was an horrifying image.

“Amy-”

“I have to go. I-” She was crying.

“Did… did your mother do this to you?”

She sat down on her bed, hands on her face as she started to cry. “I- she found. The flag. She found it. And she screamed at me and- she beat me up. Everybody heard. And now- I have to go. I have to-”

“Amy, I’m so s-”

“Did you tell her?! Did you tell her about it?! Did you tell I am-” 

He grabbed her by the shoulders, trying to calm her down. “Amy, I would never, ever do that. I didn’t tell her.”

She was crying, tear tracks running down her cheeks. “Can I go to your house? I can’t live here. I can’-”

“Of course. Don’t worry. You know you are wel-”

He heard the noise of a gunshot, and a horrible yet familiar pain in his left shoulder. Amy screamed in horror as Mako keeled over, grasping the wound and feeling the blood pouring out of the small hole.

“Mom! Oh my God! Mom! What are you- Ah!” There was another gunshot, but at the ground. He saw Amy cower in horror, covering her face as she shook and crawled backwards to the wall, horrified. 

“I should have known it!” Alice screamed behind him. Mako turned his face to see her, crying and sweaty, holding a gun in her hand. “I should have known you did this to her!”

“Drop the weapon!” Mako screamed, trying to gather his bearings to stand up but there was a fucking bullet in his shoulder.

Okay. Okay. It hadn’t been the first time he had been shot at, and the last time it happened it had been by a man twice Alice’s size. As long as she didn’t shoot him in the face then he should be okay. 

He very slowly stood up, his hands in the air. “Ma’am, please,” he hissed from the pain. “Drop the weapon.”

“I told you to take care of Amy to make her better and-and you turned her into a degenerate! A fucking pervert, like you! You fucking- you demon! You are a demon in the clothes of a priest!” her hand was shaking, and she was pointing the gun to Mako.

“Alice-”

“I’ll kill you! I’ll kill her! I’ll- I’ll-” She aimed to shoot at Mako once more. 

Amy threw her pink backpack at her mother just as she was pulling the trigger, the bullet hitting the ceiling instead when the backpack hit her in the face. Mako used the opportunity to grab the arm she was holding the gun with, but Alice used her long nails to claw at Mako’s face.

“Animal! Degenerate! Degenerates all of you!” Mako overpowered her easily, but her grip on the gun was strong. The cannon danced around dangerously.

“She is your daughter!” Mako screamed as he twisted her arm until he felt it break under his grip. She screamed and pulled the trigger. The bullet grazed Mako’s side, leaving a deep cut. 

“She is not my daughter!” She screamed in one last effort.

She pulled the trigger again but it missed Mako completely. Mako pushed her as hard as he could, making Alice trip backward. As she was falling down she shot one last time, before her head hit Amy’s desk. Her neck snapped instantly, and she was already dead before she hit the floor, eyes open and staring at the horizon. 

“Ah-”

Mako turned around, ignoring Alice’s body. 

Amy was leaning on the wall, crouching and her hands were pressed against her chest. Blood was pouring out in rivers. She looked up at Mako, pale, big eyes wide open, terrified. 

Time slowed down as Mako went over to her, his shoulder still bleeding but he ignored it. She slowly slid down to the floor, still pressing her hands against her birdcage of a chest, crying and gasping. A small trail of blood spilled from her mouth as she stared at Mako, hoping for him to help her. Sirens were heard from the distance, but she was too small. Too frail. Too young. She wasn’t going to make it. 

He grabbed her, holding her in his big arms. She stared up at him, crying and gasping for air. Her face was twisted in pain and horror, she couldn’t stop crying.

“It’s okay- it’ll be okay. You’ll be okay, Amy. You will be okay.” She wasn’t stupid. She must have known.

He didn’t know if he lied for her sake, or his.

In desperation, she grabbed at his shirt, staring up at him. She couldn’t say anything, only sobs coming out from her mouth.

“It’s Okay, Amy. You’ll be Okay.”

She closed her eyes, tear tracks going down her cheeks. 

Her hand went limp, and stopped grasping at him. 

Mako heard the police burst the door open.

And he did nothing.

 

\---

He was taken to the hospital to treat his wounds, in handcuffs. The story made the news. How could it not? A widow and her young daughter, both dead, and the priest was there.  
Everybody thought he killed them. 

He was blamed for the deaths. His reputation was destroyed. They mourned Amy and Alice Mason. Mako got death threats, people screaming at him through the hospital windows. Hospital security had to protect his room. He didn’t care. Let them kill him, he thought.

The police investigation revealed that the gun did not have his fingerprints. Further search of Amy belongings, they found her diary which documented many things from the teenager life, such as hers and Mako’s sexuality. Mako stood in court, and after the loads of evidence, and his testimony confirming the events, he was found not Guilty. There was a public outcry, they wanted to see him dead.

It was made public, their homosexuality. As soon as they found Amy was a lesbian, they buried her far from the rest, in an abandoned lot away from all the other graves.

Despite him being found innocent, everybody blamed him. Everybody knew what happened. Alice Mason snapped, but it was Mako’s fault. Mako made Amy homosexual. Mako actually killed them. Mako framed Alice. It was Mako’s fault. It was the Priest fault. The Priest killed them.  
Hundreds of rumors about him, all of them wrong. 

There was no funeral for Amy, while her mother had one and was buried next to a beautiful tree, where the good people went to rest, were good samaritans laid and went to heaven. Despite the fact that she had physically abused Amy before her death, despite the fact that she had killed her, everybody ignored that and prayed for her, for her poor soul to go to heaven.

Amy got nothing.

The clergy sweeped everything under the rug. “Extraordinary circumstances”, they said. They either didn’t care or know about Mako’s homosexuality. They made him go quiet, giving him money as long as he never became a priest again. 

Mako didn’t care. The moment he saw her die he knew he could never be a holy man again. 

He wanted to die for a long time. He still wants to. It took months for people to stop sending him death threats, but they all hated him anyways. Blamed him. “The system does not work”, they said. Mako secluded himself into his home, and for a year and half didn’t leave. He was forgotten, a failure of the community, an outside that came and destroyed the innocent lives of a small family. 

 

As he said this, his hands tightened into fists. His eyes watered, and tears spilled from the corner of his eyes. It hurt, to think of it. To think he didn’t do anything. To blame himself, going over all the ways he could have saved her. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t save Amy, and now she was dead. 

“I could…” Mako took a deep breath. “I could have saved her.”

“It was not your fault.”

“I watched her die.”

“Her mother killed her. Not you. It wasn’t-”

“She should be your age. She should be at college, having fun, living her life. But-”

Mako took a deep breath, tears spilling out. He tried not to, but he was openly sobbing. He stared at the ceiling, hoping for all those memories and the pain to go away.

Jamison went over to him, and wrapped his arms around Mako as much as he could. He pressed his face against the man’s chest, holding him close.

Mako hugged him back, pressing his face against Jamison’s hair, his tears wetting his scalp. He could feel Jamison’s frame shaking. Mako knew what he had to do.

 

He would not let the demon touch Jamison.

And if he had to die for him to live, then so be it.


	13. Center Loin Roast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mako didn’t know if the lack of emotion was due to shock or all the narcotics. A mixture of both, probably.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mako and Jamison try to figure things out
> 
> Hello!! New chapter!! I'm v excited, things are gonna start happening after this chapter and we are gonna enter the leg of the story i've been waiting for for a while huhuhu. Some small revelations in this chapter, too!
> 
> Shout out to my gf trish for being my beta! love u bby
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you like it!

Mako didn’t know if the lack of emotion was due to shock or all the narcotics. A mixture of both, probably. 

He had this happen to him before. Witnessed someone being killed, going to the hospital because he was injured too, and given a statement to the police.

It was how one of his best friends died, and it was the reason he decided to leave behind his normal life and become a man of God.

And yet here he was once again, in a hospital bed with the police asking for his statement. But it was different, too. In the past, they all knew what they were getting into. Marco knew what could happen when he decided to do it, and he got killed. He knew what the consequences could be.

Amy was just a child. 

Dear God, she was just a child. 

 

“Rutledge, we’re talking to you.”

He looked up, the police officers staring at him. They were tired, and he could only guess he looked like a complete mess. He didn’t hear whatever they asked him.

Mako looked down at himself. He saw the white sheets of his hospital bed, covering all of him.

He felt like a dead man.

\---

“The Mayor is the one that told them about my involvement with the murder, and how everybody believes that I had something big to do with it.” Mako took a drink from his tea. They had moved from his room to the small dinner table, and Jamison had offered to make tea.

Well, heat water and use tea bags, anyways.

“They also know I’m gay. I think that was also a huge reason why they don’t believe me anymore.”

“That’s stupid. I mean, you told them about the demon. The demon is real!” Jamison exclaimed, taking a sip out of his tea and burning his own tongue.

“They haven’t seen it, and probably believe I am a nutcase.”

“Why don’t ya call your friend the Bishop? Ye called him before and he helped; maybe he can help again?”

Mako thought about it. He would have to explain why the priests he sent hadn’t helped, but he could just tell it was good old homophobia. 

Bishop Carmichael knew about Mako’s situation, and about his, well, sexual preferences. They never openly discussed it, however. It was just something to be “dealt with;” as long as Mako didn’t talk about it, they were good. They paid him to keep quiet. Scandals were bad, after all. 

Mako didn’t think too much about it. He didn’t question the reasoning behind the church’s decision. He got paid, he hated everyone in that miserable town, and he didn’t ask questions. 

He did have the Bishop’s personal cell phone number, though. 

Before he could overthink it, Mako grabbed the phone and started to dial the Bishop’s number. Jamison looked at him, slightly confused.

“I’m calling the Bishop.”

Jamison made a small noise in agreement, and then stared at Mako like a hawk.

The phone rang multiple times, but no one picked up. Perplexed, Mako called him once more, but there was no answer.

He double-checked the number, and it was correct. He also had his office number, so he called that as well.

No one picked up. He tried once more, but there was no answer.

Odd. He thought of calling the normal clergy number, but if the Bishop wasn’t in his office and wasn’t picking his phone, they probably wouldn’t be able to get him to communicate with Mako.

“No one is picking up,” Mako sighed, rubbing his eyes with his hands.

“So, we’re back at square one?” 

“It seems like it.” Mako started to think, hard.

They had been failed. The priests had not helped them and the Bishop wasn’t available. But even if he was, what was he going to do? He mentioned going to the town himself, but that would take a few days and Mako felt like they didn’t have the time. 

“We need to check the news, see if there are any more murders.” Mako took a drink from his tea. “For whatever reason, it wants to kill you, and it is killing whoever looks like you. We need to keep tabs on this thing.”

Jamison nodded, standing up and going over to the television. Mako suddenly realized something.

“You shouldn’t leave the house at all anymore.”

“What?” He turned around, confused.

“I- We used to think that it only came out at night. But…that girl was killed in the middle of the day. Whatever that thing is, it can be out during the day.” He stared at Jamison. “You need to stay inside at all times. Even during the day. It could be out there, waiting for you.”

Jamison gulped, obviously nervous, but he understood. “Okay. Okay, gotcha. No leavin’ at all.”

“It’s getting bigger, too. And stronger.”

“Must be all the people it’s eatin’.”

Maybe. Whatever the reason, it was unquestionably getting stronger. Mako worried whether his house was still safe, but considering that Jamison was still alive, they should be safe.

Mako still had no idea where the hell the demon came from. Was it a cult? Did it just spawn from Hell? Was it a ritual gone wrong?

Jamison turned on the television and sat in front of it, sprawling on the couch. Mako was reminded of the circumstances of Jamison’s first encounter with the demon. He told Mako he woke up in the middle of what seemed like a botched ritual, his parents dead.

Maybe it was his parents’ fault. Maybe they summoned the demon.

He didn’t want to think that Jamison’s own family had summoned a demon to kill him, but it was the most logical conclusion, considering all the facts. He wasn’t going to just say it out loud, however. Jamison already had enough to think about with the demon trying to kill him; he couldn’t just say his parents most likely summoned it. 

But if that was true, then did they do it solo, or were they part of a cult?

If it was a cult, then they not only had to handle the demon, but also everyone who summoned it. If it was just an independent summoning, then at least the summoners were dead. 

“Huh,” Jamison muttered.

“Another killed?” Mako stood up, moving towards the couch to see the screen.

“No. Well, not really, but animals are dyin’ and stuff.”

“What?”

“The cattle. Cattle are dying.”

Indeed, the television screen was showing pictures of cattle lying dead. At first Mako thought maybe the demon was eating them, but in the pictures they showed the animals weren’t mauled, just dead. 

_”Reports say that the animals were perfectly healthy yesterday, but dropped dead this morning. More animals have been dying this past week, but this is still an enormous amount of dead cattle in the timespan of a night. There is the suspicion of poison or a disease that is killing these animals…_ ”

“Ya think it’s got anythin’ to do with the demon?”

“No, they look whole. Had it been that thing, they would be mauled and eaten. It may be just a coincidence.”

“It’s a huge amount of cattle, though…” 

“Maybe it’s like they said, poison or a disease.” Mako frowned. “No killings?”

“No, not today. That’s good!”

He figured it was. His mind was thinking of other things, however. Like, how do you kill a demon?

They would need holy water. A cross. Maybe a shotgun. 

Mako tried to remember all the shitty horror movies he had watched. Normally when they hunted ghosts they used weird tools and meters to locate them. But those were ghosts, not demons.

He rolled his eyes. He must have been really desperate if he was thinking about dumb movies. But they did need to figure something out. 

Getting holy water and more crosses wouldn’t be a bad idea, really. It wasn’t like he had a jug of the stuff somewhere.   
He _could_ bless water. But he wasn’t a priest anymore. Would it even work? He’d done it before and assumed that the water was blessed, but he never figured that he would use it against a demon.

There were probably some vials of the stuff at the church, along with some crucifixes and rosaries. They needed to load up with whatever holy thing they could find. 

Maybe he should just get his shotgun rounds blessed.

“There was a car crash on the highway,” Jamison said. 

“You think it has something to do with the demon?” Mako turned to face the television. The screen was showing the images of a mangled car.

“I don’t know? Maybe. It says it crashed against an animal, but there was no animal corpse around.”

Mako leaned over to get closer to the screen. He could see the damage to the car and, God, it looked like they had hit a horse. He knew what that was like; he once saw that happen when he was young. A small car crashed against a wild horse. No one survived. But this time the car seemed far more damaged and warped. He could just barely recognize the vehicle.

“Oh, God,” he whispered. His concerns were proven when the faces of the people appeared onscreen.

Father Desmond and Father Theodore.

Their vehicle had crashed. No survivors. Mako could see the puddles of blood on the pavement of the highway. He felt sick.

“They said they were priests? Mako, are those the guys that came here to help?” Jamison asked with fear in his voice.

“I, yes. Yes, it was them. They-” He swallowed. “They’re dead.”

“You think…it killed them?”

“It can’t be a coincidence. The two priests that knew about the demon, dead? It’s, it cannot be a coincidence.”

Mako felt sick. What was happening? They were dead. The demon killed them. It killed them. 

How did it know? Someone must have told it. There had to be a cult. There was absolutely no way there wasn’t a fucking cult. 

“We need to-” Mako’s hands were shaking. “We need to leave. We need to leave this town.”

“But the demon-”

“It’ll follow you.” Mako pressed his hands against his face, at a total loss over what to do.

\---

“Did you know that the town of Suilla gets its economy from their meat?”

Mako looked up. He was exhausted, still chained to his bed in the hospital room, and there were dark circles under his eyes. His hair wasn’t tied in a ponytail, and he couldn’t remember the last time he slept. The hospital room was boring, sterile, and police officers were guarding the entrance. 

His altar boy, Johnny, was visibly distraught. He had arrived about half hour ago; apparently the boy thought that part of his duties as Mako’s assistant were to go and be there for him while Mako was literally waiting for trial. 

“I mean- It’s famous for…that. Our meat. The town’s meat. The most, uh…the best ones are the pigs. Very high quality-”

“Why are you here,” he didn’t really ask, but demanded to know. Mako was far too out of everything to deal with a nervous boy.

“I’m…I heard about what happened and I felt bad.”

“You felt bad.”

“I don’t think you did what they said you did.”

“Do your parents know you are here?”

“N-no.”

Mako took a deep breath. He was slightly touched by the gesture, but also didn’t want to deal with more than his miserable existence right now. “Johnny-”

“Time to leave, kid,” one of the officers interrupted. “We need to ask him more questions.” 

“O-okay.” He looked over at Mako and awkwardly waved. “Goodbye, priest.”

“I’m not a priest anymore.”

Johnny looked at him, slightly stunned, but nodded very slowly and looked at the floor as he left.

Mako never saw him again.

\---

After everything that happened, Mako didn’t want to leave Jamison. But he had to go to the church; they were going to fight something bigger than themselves and they needed to get ready. 

His poor truck was going as fast as it could. He parked in front of the church and got out quickly, making his way inside. As he expected, the front doors were closed, but no matter. There was a back entrance.

It was closed, but thankfully after so many years Father Monroe still hadn’t changed the lock, and he must not have known about the spare key Mako hid under the big aloe vera pot. He retrieved the old rusty key, which worked perfectly, and made his way inside. 

He carried a big plastic bag. Everything he felt could help, he took -- rosaries, crucifixes, holy candles, incense – it got to the point he wasn’t even looking. If it looked religious, he chucked it inside the bag.   
The bag was pretty heavy with the things he was looting (looting? He had worked there before, those things used to belong to _him_ ). He made his way to the office. 

It seemed that before Father Desmond and Theodore left to tell Mako to fuck off and eventually died, they had left the office as it was. Books about demons and cults were sprawled on the table, including Amaro’s book. Mako quickly scooped them up and chucked them into the bag.

It was not stealing, he repeated to himself. He was borrowing it. Also, he used to be a priest. He could take it. Whatever. He didn’t have time to think about the morality of stealing shit from the church. It was a matter of life and death. 

He hoped there were still holy water vials around. 

Mako looked around his old office, opening the nearest drawer. There it was: the box with the vials. They were very small, clear vials of equally clear water, supposedly holy. Did holiness disappear over the years? He hoped not. He carefully took the box and put it in the bag, careful not to smash the vials. 

Okay. Books, rosaries, candles, crucifixes, holy water, incense; he figured he was done. Without wasting more time, he carried his bag outside. He closed the door behind him, locking it but keeping the key just in case. Even if it was still sunny, Mako knew that didn’t protect him. The demon could survive the day. He needed to make haste.

He got into his truck and started her up. Quickly, he made his way towards home, but the gas tank was almost empty. It wouldn’t reach home, and even if it did he would be stranded.

Cursing himself, he made his way towards the town’s sole gas station. It was a little bit of a detour, but it was, unfortunately, necessary. 

He pulled over next to the pump, gout out of his truck, and started pumping the gasoline into his gas tank. He felt nervous, feeling like someone (something?) was staring at him. 

As much as he wanted to get the gas and run, the last thing he needed were cops at his home. Mako bit his lip, going inside the convenience store attached to the gas station to pay for his gasoline. 

The moment he entered he felt his stomach drop. There weren’t too many people inside, but they all were staring at him. The middle-aged couple, the old man looking at the newspaper, the men grabbing beer; they all stared at him the moment he entered. The cashier stared at him, too, without saying a single thing. 

Mako was frozen for several seconds, and he noticed they wouldn’t stop staring. He gulped and started walking towards the cashier.

“Uh, pump one…” He fumbled with his words and fingers as he pulled out his wallet. “Half-full. Twenty liters-”

“ _We have eyes everywhere,_ ” a voice whispered, so faint Mako felt it was right next to his ear. 

He turned around, but there was no one around him. Frantic, he looked around, but no one was staring at him anymore. They were doing their own things, ignoring him.

His heart beat hard against his chest, sweat rolling down the fat of his neck.

“Sir.” The cashier, with a very different voice from the one that whispered at him, caught his attention.

“I- yes-” He just dumped the cash on the counter, and the cashier sighed and counted it all, giving Mako his change. He didn’t care. He just nodded and hurried out the door.

Cult. Definitely a fucking cult. That, or he was losing his mind. 

He hoped it was the second one. At least there was medication for that. 

Mako basically rushed towards his truck, still locked and untouched. He looked at the bag and the contents were intact. Without looking back, he turned on the engine and got the fuck out of there. 

 

It made sense. Someone had seen him run out of the fast food restaurant. If they had seen him, they must have surely seen the demon too. They had to get out of town. 

But wherever they went, the demon would follow too. It wanted Jamison. It killed Father Theodore and Father Desmond when they were on their way out; it would absolutely follow them. 

But even if they escaped, the cult could find them. _We have eyes everywhere_. 

He quickly got back home. It wasn’t dark yet when he carried the bag inside. Jamison was sitting in front of the television, staring at Mako as he walked through the door. The blond immediately felt something was off.

“You okay? You look awfully pale.”

Mako closed the door behind him and put the bag next to the couch. He plopped down next to Jamison, feeling calmer next to the younger man. 

“I think-” He swallowed. “I think the demon was summoned by a cult.”

“Like, a cult-cult? Like one of those from movies?”

“I don’t know but…I went to the gas station. And everyone…they all stared at me. I’m used to people staring, but this was…different. It felt wrong. And when I paid for the gas I heard a voice and it said that they had eyes everywhere.”

“Holy shit,” Jamison whispered.

The television was still on. More and more reports of the dead cattle were coming out, and someone else who had been killed.

“ _...The body of Ernest Holt was found by the river this afternoon. The killing seems to have the same characteristics as the previous victims and fits the same profile._ ”

Mako turned to face the television as they showed a photograph of the man. Young, blond, skinny, white. Like the others. Like Jamison. 

“They keep trying to pin the murders on me,” Mako sighed.

“Do…do you think they know I’m here with ya?”

“No, no. I don’t believe they do. They would have tried to hunt you down, would have asked me where you were. I am just an annoyance to them at the moment.” 

“They killed those priests. Don’t ya think they will try to kill ye too?!”

That was…something Mako didn’t think about. The demon had tried to kill him a couple of times now, but he always managed to get away. But now it was stronger and faster; who knew, maybe next time it tried it would succeed. 

“It attacked me before. It’ll probably try to again.” 

“What…do we do?”

Mako looked at the television, then at the bag at his feet. He pulled it close, taking out the box with the vials first before dumping the rest of the items next to the television. They spilled out onto the table, candles and rosaries rolling out of the bag. 

He grabbed a handful of books and gave a bunch to Jamison. The young man stared at the covers, then back at Mako.

“We kill a demon.”

\---

The rest of the afternoon had been spent reading their books. Mako scoured the books for anything that could help, any little detail that could save their lives. He had written down everything he thought was important, highlighted all the sections that caught his eye. Jamison did the same, scribbling on paper everything he thought interesting. But now, they couldn’t care less. It wasn’t in their minds.

It started with a small kiss. Something safe to ground each other after Jamison got panicked due to the situation he was in. The kiss turned into multiple kisses, deep, comforting. 

Mako touched him through his clothes, his fat fingers tracing his ribs while Jamison’s hand touched his soft sides. 

They didn’t move from the couch. They pushed away the books and rosaries, which clattered to the ground. The floor was covered with crucifixes, candles, and incense as Mako sank onto Jamison’s dick, riding him in the darkness of the room. 

“God,” Jamison gasped, covering his face with his stump arm, fingers digging into the cushions underneath him. It felt sacrilegious, but Mako didn’t care. 

He bit his lip as he rolled his hips, careful to not crush Jamison with his girth. He pushed down, letting out a soft breath with every movement. He pressed his huge hand against Jamison’s lithe torso, feeling the young man’s heartbeat. 

Jamison contorted himself, baring his neck and pressing the back of his head against the couch. He whispered sweet words, biting his lip as he tried to meet Mako by thrusting his hips up.   
He looked beautiful. Mako couldn’t keep his eyes off him, didn’t even want to blink. 

He took a sharp breath when he hit his prostate, clenching around Jamison. The young man arched his back, gasping as he hid his face, lips crooked in ecstasy. Mako noticed the tear tracks on the blond’s cheeks.

“Hey,” Mako gasped out, stopping his movements. “You okay?” 

“Y-yes,” he breathed out, but was still covering his face. This wasn’t enough for Mako. 

“Let me see you.” He gently pulled Jamison’s stump away to look at his face. His eyes were red, crying.

“Jamie-”

“No- don’t stop. Don’t stop! I’m just-” he chuckled, nervously. “It’s overwhelming.” 

“What is?” He didn’t move.

“The way you look at me. Th- the way ya treat me,” he chuckled, but he was crying now. “Like I am important.” 

“Jamie-” He moved forward and Jamison thrusted his hips one last time, orgasming inside of Mako. He let him, rolling his hips to help him through it. Jamison’s body shook, toes curling. His eyes opened, his one hand wrapping around Mako’s cock and pumping it. 

Mako was going to tell him he didn’t have to, but his slender fingers twisted and pulled in a way that Mako couldn’t resist. He came, too, spilling on Jamison’s hand. He felt his orgasm crash through his body, and he grit his teeth while he was coming down. 

Seconds passed, both of them taking harsh breaths as they came back to earth. Mako carefully held Jamison’s chin, getting him to look at the older man. 

“You okay?” ee asked, one final time. 

“Yeah- I-” He smiled. “I’m fine, mate.” He nuzzled his cheek against Mako’s palm, smiling at the touch. “I’m fine.”

Mako nodded. Hopefully, they would be fine.


	14. Sirloin Cutlet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They don’t exactly teach you how to kill demons at Catholic school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They plan their next move
> 
> Hello!!! Whats UP!! I didn't upload this for a bit because I was finishing other fic, but oh well! here we are again. This is where shit goes down, and honestly I can't WAIT. this is what I was waiting for for a while. from here and now on, shit will be a bit more intense.
> 
> Thanks to my GF for being my beta! love you baby!
> 
> A PLUG! Hey Guys! Me and some really talented pals worked together and put together a Roadrat Charity Fanzine! It's fic focused, with illustration from amazing artists. All proceeds will go to charity, so Please check it out! Its amazing, and we all worked very hard for it! All proceeds will go to the trevor project, and you'll get cool shit, so please consider buying it! Thank you! https://tmblr.co/ZLUC-b2d7EJll
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you guys like it!

They don’t exactly teach you how to kill demons at Catholic school.

And it wasn’t like they could just _ask_. Not before, and definitely not now. Even if he could contact the Bishop, two priests just died while they were getting out of town. That didn’t paint a good picture at all. The odds were against them. 

They would have to take the matter into their own hands.

Mako already had most of the things he thought would be needed. Rosaries, crosses, holy water, the works. They would have to think of an actual plan on how to lure the thing and kill it. 

Jamison was looking through Mako’s kitchen cabinets, pulling out his big containers of salt. Mako looked at him curiously, head tilted. “What are you doing?”

“Heard ghosts and demons hate salt. Make a ring of salt and they won’t pass through it. They can’t touch the stuff.” He stood up and held one of the containers in his hand. “Might be worth trying?”

“Sure, why not. Can’t hurt to try.” Mako wanted to think that was a ridiculous idea, but at this point of the game, they couldn’t be too skeptical.

There was still the matter of how they would lure the demon, though. 

“So what do we do now?” Jamison sat on the couch, breathing a huge sigh as he saw all the holy things in front of him on the table. They were pretty much ready. “What’s the idea?”

“We are going to have to lure that thing to us and attack it. I don’t know where, though.” 

“We can lure it into the woods?”

Mako shook his head. “That thing is probably used to the woods at this point. Too many hiding places. We need somewhere we know.”

Jamison shrugged. “Then where? We can’t lure it into the town; if people see it, they’ll…I dunno. But it can’t be good, right?”

Mako kind of wanted to shove it in their faces, though. That a demon had been killing people, not him. But it was too risky. They couldn’t do that.

“What if,” Jamison started to think, “we lure it somewhere, then make a circle of salt around him, and then trap him and kill him?” 

“We don’t even know if the salt works.”

Jamison bit his lip and thought.

“We could…try. Like, surround the house with salt and then see what happens? Set up the cameras and see if it comes back?”

Mako thought about it. Was it worth spending another day to see if the salt worked? They didn’t even know if the thing would come by again. It had been trying to get in, but Mako’s house was blessed, so it just wouldn’t be able to. And it was the only place they could try the salt method; if Mako was to go to town and put salt in random places, now _that_ would be an issue. 

Was it worth testing? If the salt thing worked, then it would be a huge relief, something more to work with. Not to mention, they still didn’t have an actual concrete plan.

“Okay. You set the camera again, I’ll take the salt and make a circle around the house.” 

“Got it, Captain.” Jamison jumped up, grabbed the camera, and ran outside. 

Mako grabbed the container of salt. He had several of the things lying around, so he wasn’t too worried about wasting it if this did work. He started to dump the salt on the ground outside his house and watched Jamison climb a tree. Considering he only had one arm, he was pretty damn dexterous. 

He finished up making the circle around his house. It left him with very little salt left in the container, but he had more, so it didn’t matter. Jamison had already climbed down the tree. 

“Now we wait,” Mako said, waiting for Jamison to go back inside before closing his door once more.

“Roight, we still got the issue about how we’re gonna corner it and attack it, though.”

“Hmm.” He went to the kitchen and took a deep breath. “You hungry?”

“Yeah…” Jamison said while he examined the candles.

“Keep a watch on the news. I’ll cook something up.”

He heard the sound of the television turning on. Mako dug through his fridge, but he didn’t have much. He grabbed a can of creamy chicken soup along with some frozen vegetables. 

He dumped the can of soup into a pot and started to stir. He added the frozen vegetables and lazily looked as they started to boil. Mako remembered a recipe he had done a couple of times in the past. While the soup was heating up, he wandered back to his fridge to get the rest of the ingredients. 

He pre-heated the oven, and while the soup was still warming up, Mako mixed an egg, a cup of some almost-expired biscuit mix, and some milk until he made a batter. Once the soup had boiled and was ready, he dumped it in a small pan, adding the batter on top. Finished, he stuck it into the oven and waited. 

The soft sounds of the television reached him. Mako took a deep breath and served himself a glass of water. Everything was horrible and stressful and he just wanted it all to end. 

But it would end soon. Either by them surviving, or both of them getting murdered.

Before he realized it, about twenty-five minutes had passed. 

He took the chicken pot pie and set it to the counter. He grabbed two plates and cut a slice for each. Mako carried both plates to the living room, and gave one to Jamison.

“Careful, it’s hot.”

“Oh, man.” Jamison beamed at his plate. “Mom used to make the best chicken pot pies! It was my favorite thing, but it was very rare when she made ‘em. ‘Too busy, Jamie,’ she would tell me, and then order pizza.” 

The young man took a spoonful out of the pie, and Mako watched him recoil a little bit because of how hot it was, but he still looked delighted. “Awh, man…this is great.”

“Glad you enjoy it.” He took a bite out of his own slice, and it was pretty good, considering it was just from a soup can. 

“Livestock keeps dyin’. And meat is rottin’.”

“What, meat?”

“Yeah, like…butcheries and the like - their meat is suddenly goin’ bad? People think it’s a virus. I don’t know. But apart from that, nothin’ new.”

“Okay. That’s good. We don’t need more deaths.”

They ate in silence while staring at the television set. Jamison put his unfinished slice of chicken pot pie on the table and looked down at his hand. 

“Jamie-”

“I’m going to lure it.”

After some seconds of silence, Mako put his unfinished plate besides Jamison’s. 

“It wants me. I’m going to lure him so we can kill it. W’ree gonna trap him and, and-”

“Jamison, it would be a great risk.”

“I know, but God, Mako, what else are we gonna do? How are we gonna lure that thing?!”

“You’re right. It’s just, it’s too dangerous. I don’t want anything to happen to you.” 

Jamison sighed and laid down, resting his hand on Mako’s lap. The older man caressed his blond hair gently. 

“I don’t want to die.”

“I don’t want you to die, either.”

“But we gotta do this. We…if we don’t do this, a lot more people are gonna die. I can’t let that happen! I can’t-”

“Shhhh.” Mako just continued to pet his hair. “I know. I understand.” 

Jamison stared up at Mako. His one hand reached towards his face and very softly touched his cheek. Mako pressed Jamison’s hand against his own face with his big palm, feeling something warm in his chest. He kissed the meat of Jamison’s palm and heard Jamison hum contentedly. 

Jamison wrapped his hand around Mako’s thick neck and pulled himself up for their lips to touch. Mako held him there, one arm wrapping around Jamison and propping him up.   
The blond’s hand just kept caressing him softly, gently tracing his cheeks and nose while he continued to kiss him softly. 

Mako kissed him back, his lips gently sucking on Jamison’s, tasting the chicken on his tongue. He cradled him close, kissing him until they ran out of air.

“Please,” Jamison breathed into his neck, clinging to Mako. “Don’t let me die.”

“I won’t.” Jamison was crying now, and Mako just held him close. “I won’t let you die.”

 

\---

 

That night, they both held each other as they slept. 

The sunlight bathed them, waking Mako up. He still was holding Jamison, who was fast asleep. He pressed a kiss on his forehead, gentle and loving. Jamison sighed contentedly and looked up at Mako lovingly. 

It was time. 

 

Something kicked down the front door, _hard_. Mako sat up quickly and shoved Jamison out the window while the ruckus came down their way.

Jamison was able to jump out of the window, still in his pajamas and oversized hoodie. Mako looked outside for a moment to see men in uniforms coming out of the woods.

“No!” he shouted as one of them shot at Jamison. 

The blond stiffened, convulsed, and dropped to the ground, Tased.

Mako got up, but they reached his bedroom. They shot at him with Tasers, too. His body went stiff, but he refused to go down. He bared his teeth and screamed, trying to move. Another set of electrodes dug into his flesh. He couldn’t stand it, and he too fell down. 

“Quick! Handcuff him!” He heard the men coming towards him and was immediately handcuffed. 

Everything was blurry and dizzy. His mind swam around, and he could hear shouting everywhere, and he could feel his body being dragged away. 

Jamison. Where was Jamison? What would they do to him? What were they going to do? They took him away. They were going to kill him. They were going to kill Jamison. 

He was shoved inside a police van, and just before they closed the doors, he watched them drag Jamison’s limp body inside a police car, shoving his unconscious form into the car without a care.

Mako wanted to get up and fight, he wanted to tear them all apart. He wanted to do _something_ , but his body burned and his mind was too busy, too bad, too numb. He couldn’t do a thing, his muscles locked up and useless. 

They closed the doors of the van, and he lost consciousness. 

 

\---

He was drowning. He couldn’t breathe. It felt as if his throat was closed, and he clawed and pawed at his throat but he just couldn’t breathe.

Everything around him pulsated, bled. It moved like meat, hissed like snakes, twitched like dead animals that had been butchered yet they were still alive. The smell of rotten meat reached his nose, made him gag. He wanted to throw up.

Everything was made of meat. Intestines. Skin. Bones. He could feel the crunch of the bones under his feet. Could feel the softness of the muscles on his fingertips, the moistness of the meat itself on his skin. Everything. Everything. Everything around him was nothing but meat, butchered, bleeding, rotting, disgusting. 

Flies swarmed around him, on him, waiting for him to die. Feasting on the meat around him, buzzing in the intoxicating smell of the meat. 

He was to be butchered.

Like a pig

Stuck like a pig bled like a pig he bleeds and bleeds and bleeds and it doesn’t stop it _does not stop_ all of them are bleeding along bleeding to feast something to feed something to satiate a hunger that has been growing generation after generation that calls for them, for their blood, for their tendons their veins their muscles their eyes their teeth their hair and there was nothing they could do there is nothing nothing nothing nothing nothing nothing

 

And 

 

He let her die

 

He let her die and he let her die she died and it was his fault _his fault_ and there was nothing he could do he let her die like an animal because everyone in this goddamn fucking town in the middle of nowhere is a fucking animal to be butchered and eaten 

A **m**  
 _y_

 

 _a_ **M** Y

 

He was so sorry.

 

“There is a process for this.”

He sucked in air as he woke up, his eyes opening wide. Mako still felt tired and just shitty in genera; getting Tased did that to you.

When he looked around, he realized he was back in the jail cell. He wasn’t handcuffed or tied up, though. He thought he would be. He was still wearing his sweatpants and the undershirt that wasn’t big enough for his gut and left part of his skin exposed. 

“You don’t seem to understand what I am saying, Jonathan.”

A familiar voice. The Mayor’s. Mako stood up and rolled his shoulders, walking over and pressing his face against the cell bars, listening in. 

“Mayor, with all due respect, there _is_ a process to this. I can’t just do as you say.” Mako recognized that voice, too. It was the detective that had been harassing him all those days. 

His mind still didn’t make much sense. As he listened to them, he went through what happened in his mind.

He and Jamison were going to figure out a way to attract the demon using Jamison as a lure. That morning, his house was raided by the police. They took him and Jamison and-

They took Jamison. Fuck, they took Jamison.

They thought Jamison was the killer. Fuck. Jamison was outside of his house, in the open, and the demon could get him at any minute, fuck fuck _fuck_.

“We are talking about a very dangerous criminal, Jonathan! We need to-”

“Do the process as it is stated by the law. I am sorry, Mayor, but we need to follow the law closely. Now, if you excuse me…”

“Fine. _Fine_. This will not be the end of it, Jonathan.”

The voices stopped, and Mako could hear footsteps approaching. At first he thought it would be the detective, but Mayor Dora appeared in front of him instead.

She stared at him with fierce eyes. She didn’t smile, but Mako could tell she wanted to. There was victory in her face, smug, poisonous.

“Didn’t think you would be hiding him. Housing a murderer? That’s a very serious crime, Father.” 

Mako said nothing, just stared. 

“It’ll all be over soon. For him, and for you.”

The corners of his mouth twitched as he grasped the bars strongly. She continued to stare at him until Detective Jonathan appeared as well.

“Mayor, you cannot be here. I apologize, but please leave.”

She said nothing as she left. Mako followed her with his eyes until she disappeared into the hallways.

“Arrogant idiot,” Mako whispered under his breath. Jonathan heard him, but said nothing.

“Mako Rutledge, I am honestly surprised.” The detective crossed his arms. He looked tired, bags under his eyes and skin dry. “I did not expect this to be the outcome, if I must be honest.”

“You harassed me to no end, though.” 

“I thought you would have something to do with the murders. I didn’t expect you to have a romance with the main suspect.”

Mako took a deep breath and pressed his forehead into the bars. “How did you know?”

“The condoms we found, Rutledge. Sent them to a lab in the city to have the DNA examined. Didn’t get the results until now.” 

Mako felt his heart sink.

“Where is he?”

“Fawkes? That is none of your business. We still have an investigation to run, and-”

“He didn’t do it. He didn’t kill his parents. He didn’t kill anyone.” He gripped the bars tight, until his knuckles went white. “He didn’t do it. He isn’t a murderer.”

“We will see about that. Even so, you knew he was a wanted man, and yet you sheltered him in your home. Pretty illegal, don’t you think, Father?”

Mako felt something burn in his gut. 

“He will die if he stays here. It’ll come and kill him. You can’t - he didn’t do it. It will kill him!”

Detective Jonathan was interested by this. He squinted his eyes and stared at Mako intently. “What are you talking about; what will kill him?”

“The thing - the one that has been killing all those people. It will kill him! It wants to kill him.”

“What thing, Rutledge?”

“The demon.”

The detective looked at him funny and tilted his head a little. “What do you mean, ‘demon’?”

“There is a demon, here in this town. It is killing people. It killed his parents. It killed the other people. It killed the priests; whatever it is, it’s a demon and it’s killing and eating. And it wants to kill Jamison.”

The detective stared at him for several more seconds, then turned around and started to leave. “I’ll schedule you for a psychological evaluation.”

“I’m not crazy!” he screamed into the hallways. “I’m not crazy! It’ll kill him! It will kill him! You can’t leave him here! Edacitas will kill him!”

But Jonathan had already left. 

Mako was alone in his cell. He sat down on the floor and pressed his face against his palms. Everything was horrible and he didn’t know just how they could fix it.

He still could hear soft voices in the background from Jonathan and other police officers. 

“Jamison!” he screamed into the hallways. “Jamie! Jamison! Jamison!”

But there was no answer.

“Hey! Shut the fuck up!” a voice screamed from the opposite direction. One of the officers, probably. It didn’t matter; Jamison didn’t answer back, which meant he was either still passed out or in another section of the small jail. 

After a few minutes, a male police officer walked through the hallway and stopped at Mako’s cell, staring at him with dead eyes.

“What?” Mako barked, but the man just stared.

“It’ll be over tonight.”

He smiled, then left.

Mako bit his lip. This man was probably part of the goddamn fucking cult of God Knows What that wanted him and Jamison dead. There was no way he could get out of the cell himself. 

Anxiously, he waited and waited. He couldn’t stop thinking about Jamison and what was going to happen to the young man. Would the monster kill him? Would it rip him apart like those other people? 

Mako couldn’t stomach the thought. 

 

Hours passed, and Mako was consumed by his own thoughts and his own failures. His skin burned, his throat was dry, and his eyes were itchy. No one had come to check on him or talk, which was maybe for the better. He felt like there was a rock lodged in his throat and he couldn’t spit it out.

The moonlight seeped inside of his cell. He could still hear Detective Jonathan’s voice. The minutes and hours blended together as he rotted away in his cell, waiting for something, anything. Any clue of what would happen to him, to Jamison. 

He couldn’t save Jamison.

Something loud banged on the outside of the building. Loud enough for Mako to hear. He ignored it, until more loud and harsh sounds echoed through the hallways.

After a few minutes, the sounds were now louder and closer. He ignored it altogether, at least until the screams started.

Mako stood up as he heard gunshots and screaming coming from deep inside the police station. The screams died with wet ripping sounds, horrible gurgles as the gunshots died away one by one. He recognized Jonathan’s voice, screaming and then dying as something ripped him apart.

It was here.

Mako’s heartbeat skyrocketed, palms sweating and body shaking. He gulped as he heard wet sounds coming closer to him, the shadow of something getting closer and closer, looming, seeking more. 

“Give him to me.”

It was bigger than before. Broken. Blood seeped from where it had been shot, drooling saliva and blood. It stared at Mako from the other side of the bars, its face bubbling as it breathed. It hissed, nails and bones sticking out of its body, growing like tumors.

Mako was trapped.

It grabbed at the bars of the jail cell and pulled. The bars broke completely, and it slipped inside the cell. Its face split in three, revealing teeth deep inside, both animal and human. A cow tongue lolled out of its mouth as it approached Mako, bubbles of blood coming out of its maw.

Mako moved faster than he had ever moved his entire life. The thing lunged at him and he threw himself to the other side. It crashed harshly against the wall, leaving a dent in it. Its huge body got stuck between the surviving bars, and with its spasms and wriggling, it brought down the entire gate. 

Quickly, Mako tackled it, pushing the now-dislodged bars aside as he slipped out of the cell. The monster attempted to follow but got stuck, the bars adhering to its torso. It screamed and hissed for him, and Mako didn’t look back. 

When he got to the main office, it was worse than he imagined.

The police officers who had the bad luck of being there had been torn apart, ripped to shreds by the creature. Intestines were sprawled all over the room, blood smeared throughout the place. 

Mako took a deep breath. He blindly ran through another one of the doors, thinking it would lead to the main hallway towards the exit. However, his adrenaline and panic misled him, and Mako ended up in the evidence room. 

“Fuck.” He took a deep breath. He quickly scanned the room, trying to find something he could use in the next five seconds. 

His things were there: his shotgun, his holy things. He quickly grabbed a backpack that was thrown in the room, poured out the contents (a couple of bags of what seemed to be cocaine) and shoved his holy things inside as soon as he could. He immediately grabbed his shotgun, and just before he exited, he noticed a couple of propane tanks on one side.

Very quickly, he dragged the tanks into the main lobby. He could feel they were mostly full. Quickly, he opened them both, and he could smell the gas coming out of them. Mako heard the monster finally dislodg itself from the bars of the cell and make its way to him, to kill him. 

“ _WHERE IS HE?!_ ”

He ran out of there, letting the propane tanks leak gas. He had to step over Detective Jonathan’s mangled body as he exited. 

“ _GIVE HIM TO ME!_ ”

Mako tackled the exit door, and when he was finally out, he looked back to see the demon just arriving at the main office. Mako took a deep breath, aimed his shotgun, and pulled the trigger.

The slug traveled fast, but it didn’t hit the demon. Mako hadn’t aimed at it, anyways. It hit the metallic desk, the impact of the slug with the metal causing sparks fly around the room.

 

The explosion was loud. Mako quickly shielded himself behind the Police Station sign on the front as the explosion ignited everything within. The propane started it, yes, but there must have been far more flammable things inside for the explosion to be that big. Mako covered his head with his arms as he felt the heat. His heart was beating fast.

Jamison wasn’t inside the police station. Had he been, then the demon would have gotten to him directly. He must have been somewhere else. 

The fact that the demon was still looking for the blond meant that Jamison was still alive.

Mayor Dora Brown. She knew something. She had something to do with all of this.

Quickly, he went to one of the police vans. Using his knowledge from his youth, he hotwired it quickly, getting it to start. He took a deep breath and looked at the now-burning police station. He knew it probably wasn’t enough to kill the demon.

Mako hit the gas and made his way to Dora’s house.


	15. Blade Steak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Say cheese!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mako learns about the situation.
> 
>  
> 
> Hello!!! This one is short- but, hear me out. At this moment, i either made the chapter extremely long, or I would have to cut it in an awkward part so it wouldn't be as long, so I made the decision to have it a bit shorter this time. Sometimes you just gotta!!
> 
> ALSO, WARNING ON THIS CHAPTER: There is Child Abuse. Specifically: a Baby has a limb amputation. its not explicitly described. But, it happens. So, plz keep safe ok? 
> 
> Thanks to my gf trish who was my beta! thank u bby!
> 
> A PLUG! Hey Guys! Me and some really talented pals worked together and put together a Roadrat Charity Fanzine! It's fic focused, with illustration from amazing artists. All proceeds will go to charity, so Please check it out! Its amazing, and we all worked very hard for it! All proceeds will go to the trevor project, and you'll get cool shit, so please consider buying it! Thank you! <https://tmblr.co/ZLUC-b2d7EJll>
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope y'all like it!

Mako’s fingers drummed anxiously against the steering wheel. There were far too many thoughts on his mind, each wilder than the last. 

This was it. This would be the end, one way or another. 

He quickly drove to Dora’s house. He knew that the Mayor had something to do with all of this. She had been on his back during the entire ordeal and demanded action from Detective Jonathan. It was no coincidence; she had to be part of whatever fucking cult took over this town. 

He looked at the clock on the radio. It was barely 1:00 A.M.

Mako tried to figure out what he would do once he got to Dora’s house. He would question her if she was there, but something in his gut told him Dora wasn’t going to be home. She would be wherever Jamison was.

Even so, there was nothing else he could do. He needed to find out where they were before they killed Jamison. 

Several minutes later, Mako finally made it to her house. As expected, her car was nowhere to be found, and the lights were off. Parking outside, he got out of the car and made his way inside. He had to force the front door open, but his adrenaline was high and it was no problem for him. 

Mako turned on the lights. Her living room was normal, nothing out of the ordinary. Mako quickly scanned his surroundings to find any sort of clue, anything at all. Something that could give him information.

However, there was nothing. He quickly moved on to the kitchen. It was spotless, nothing standing out from a quick look. Mako dragged his hand down his face. Quickly, he went upstairs to keep investigating. He made his way to her bedroom, privacy be damned.

Her entire house so far was a goddamn fucking normal house and it drove Mako nuts. He knew that she had to be hiding something somewhere. There was no way Dora was not connected to the cult. 

He moved on to her study. It was a rather small room, and it had some bookcases propped against the walls. Mako quickly went through the books, but they were all useless. Romance books, novels, things that were of no relevance. 

“Fuck!” He knocked a row of books to the floor in anger.

Through the shelves of the bookcase, he saw the wall. Mako noticed a strange indentation on it. Quickly, he dragged the bookcase out of the way, not bothering about the books he knocked out of the process.

A hidden door was covered by the bookcase. It had no doorknob, but when Mako pressed it, the door opened inwards. It was small, forcing him to crouch to get inside. The room was pitch black, and the priest had to paw around to find the light switch. 

Once he found it and turned on the lights, the small room was illuminated. 

An old television set with a VCR propped on top of it was on the opposite side of the room. Shelves full of old VHS tapes sat next to the television, lining the walls. 

On the other wall hung dozens of photographs. Mako got closer; all the photographs were of young people, each about Jamison’s age. Every photograph was paired with a picture of a baby. Most likely them as babies. 

The last photograph was Jamison’s. 

Mako felt his heart sink in his chest. Not only did the demon want to kill Jamison, so did the cult. Dora did, but he couldn’t understand why. 

He moved on to the movies. Each one had been labeled with different names and dates. There were two movies for each person, however, one dated twenty-one years after the other. But some of the tapes had completely different titles; “Meat Production 1980”, “Factory Inspection”, “Cattle Growth”…it was strange, but he focused on the films with actual names.

His eyes traveled and, as expected, he found Jamison’s tape. Instead of two, there was only one, and going by the date, Mako realized it had been filmed twenty-one years ago, shortly after Jamison was born. 

Gulping, he took the tape and popped it into the VHS player.

There was some static at the start, but the image stabilized soon enough. The video showed a group of people huddled together. They had no robes or any special outfits, but their faces were obscured by the shadows. At first, Mako thought that they were in a room, but the little lightning around the area revealed they were in the woods. 

A stone table lay in the middle of the circle the group had formed. The lights began to flicker, but no one moved or did anything. 

Several minutes of film passed and no one moved, the lights continuing to flicker. After some more minutes, two more people appeared in the frame carrying a small bundle with them. Their faces were in the frame, and Mako recognized them as the light hit them just right. 

It was the Fawkeses, but younger. They uncovered the bundle they were carrying, and it was a small baby. Jamison. 

The lights began to flicker more, and the people just stared at the baby. He had to be about a month old, and he just wriggled and cried on the cold stone. 

Shadows began to rise from the floor, red tendrils that looked like meat ascending the trees. Static started to fill the screen. The mother retrieved a butcher’s knife, raised it towards the sky as she stared at her son.

Her eyes showed no hesitation as she brought the blade down on her son. 

 

A horrible scream echoed through the forest as the screen filled with static. The creature that had been attacking them rose from the shadows, opening its maw as it loomed over the screaming child. 

It reached for the baby’s detached right arm. 

 

The screen filled entirely with static, then went blank. The VHS player gently popped the tape out.

Sweat rolled down Mako’s neck like bullets. His eyes were wide, mouth dry, and he had a horrible, horrible feeling in his gut. 

Something stung him from behind. It forced him to stand, his body locking up as the electricity painfully coursed through his body. He dropped to his knees, but wasn’t down just yet. He stood up quickly, ready to attack, only to be Tased once more, the electric charge stronger this time. 

Mako went cross-eyed, his entire body convulsing. His teeth clenched until he thought he would break them. 

He finally fell. The last thing he saw was Dora’s high heels in front of him. Then, everything went dark.

\---

“Say cheese!” 

A light blinds him. It takes a few seconds for his vision to come back. When it does, he sees her standing there in front of him, smile wide and full of life, holding an old camera.

Amy lifts the camera again and smiles behind it, her hair blowing in the wind. “Say cheese!”

“Amy,” Mako calls. She laughs.

“Don’t move!” she laughs as she focuses the camera.

“Amy,” he repeats. He tries to move but he can’t. He can only see her from afar. “Amy, don’t go back to your mother’s. Amy, get out of your house. Amy, don’t go back. Don’t go back to your house.”

She smiles and takes another picture.

“Amy, don’t go.”

“Say,” she giggles, “say cheese!”


	16. Crown Roast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bleed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mako finds himself in a horrible situation
> 
> Hello!! Sorry this one took a while to write- I am trying a few new things and... well you'll see! 
> 
> I am very nervous about this chapter, but also VERY excited! Nervous because this is basically kind of like... the explanation. or at least some of the explanation.  
> So im excited because this is like... this is it! this is the part i've been working on ever since I started the fic. Hopefully I didn't fuck it up!
> 
> I hope you guys like it! I worked very hard for this part in specific, and will work really hard for the next parts as well. Thank you guys for reading and I hope you like it!
> 
> Shotout to my gf trish who was the beta reader! love u bby!

The cool air made Mako shiver, waking him up. 

He moved a little, but his body hurt. He quickly realized his arms were handcuffed around a tree behind his back, preventing him from moving. Everything around him was pitch black, so he couldn’t exactly tell where he was. The tree and the cool air meant he was most likely outside, somewhere in the forest. 

The last thing he remembered was Dora tasing him. She must have dragged him out there and left him to be killed by the demon.

The crickets sang loudly while Mako sweated despite the cool night. 

Okay. He needed to relax. This wasn’t the first time he had been handcuffed. He had been part of a gang, after all. He had been able to break handcuffs in the past, but that was many years ago; maybe with the adrenaline rush-

Mako could hear something approaching. For one second, he thought it would be the demon, but the sounds were slow and steady rather than frantic and desperate. Faint light appeared, and as the sounds came closer, so did the light. 

Soon enough, there was enough light for Mako to see around him. He had been right; he was in the middle of the forest, but he quickly recognized exactly where he was.

It was the scene from the VHS he watched. There was the stone table in front of him, stained with blood.

Mako took a sharp breath. The light came even closer, and people finally came out of the bushes and trees, holding camping lanterns. 

Mako recognized most of them. He didn’t _know_ them, but he had seen them. All of them were dressed in normal clothes, as opposed to, well, cult robes or whatever.   
The gas station attendant was there. The cop who had threatened him was there. Doctors, nurses, teachers, people who Mako had interacted with were there, and they just stared at him in silence.

“So this is it, huh?” Mako said. “You’re going to kill me?”

They said nothing.

More people were approaching. Mayor Dora popped out, holding another camping lantern. She approached him and stared down at him. Mako realized she was carrying his shotgun on her back.

“What?” Mako hissed. “This is the part where you kill me, no?”

“Not yet, no,” she sighed. “I could kill you right now, but I’d rather you watch and suffer, to be honest.”

“Where is Jamison?”

“All in due time, Priest.”

“So you are all into this garbage, huh?” Mako motioned to the others. “Everyone here? You all are part of this little cult?”

“And more, Father,” Dora interrupted. “But we only need the most crucial for the ritual.” One of them was setting up a camera. 

“And for what? You just get off on murdering people? Chopping off babies’ limbs?”

“You wouldn’t understand.” 

“You summoned some…some fucking meat monster to kill people. What is there to understand?”

“You don’t understand!” she screamed. “We must do this to survive! This town needs to survive!”

She was holding a knife, which she pointed at Mako. “Your little stunt of protecting Fawkes already screwed us up! The meat has gone bad, animals have died, and for what? Just to protect some hooligan’s life?!”

The meat? Animals?

“We all need to make sacrifices for the best. And you, because of you, there was already plenty of damage. A lot of people died because you wouldn’t give him up.”

It was starting to click. 

“It killed animals. The meat went bad. It-it fucking makes your industry thrive, doesn’t it?”

“The town of Suilla is known for its meat.”

The light bounced off the sharp knife, reflecting on Mako’s face. 

“Centuries ago, this town was on the brink of death. Nothing grew. People died. But then our ancestors started the ritual, and the town has thrived. It has the best meat, the best animals. It is a contract we fulfill every generation.” 

“You kill people. Why do you chop off their limbs as babies? To mark them?”

“Technically, no. We have to choose someone new. And we must show Him that this person is the one we chose to become the lamb. The contract is sealed when He tastes them. A promise. We promised Jamison Fawkes to him twenty-one years ago. But the promise was broken. Now because of this, you see all the damage that has come to town. People are dying.” 

Something approached. “Ah, the guest of honor.”

Two people appeared, whom Mako recognized as a doctor and the bartender of the local pub. The bartender was carrying Jamison over his shoulder. Mako felt his stomach drop.

“What took you so long?”

“The roads are a mess. He is rampaging through the town and killing people,” the doctor said. “What will we do when this is over?”

“Doesn’t matter. I’ll figure it out later! Now come on,”

The bartender basically dropped Jamison onto the stone. The young blond whined softly, moving his head a little.

“What?! He is awake?” Doris reacted.

“The anesthesia is starting to wear off, but he won’t be able to move, don’t worry.”

“Give him more! What if he starts screaming? Do you want to hear that?!” Doris was starting to lose her calm.

“If I give him more then he will die. And He wants the kid alive,” the doctor replied. “It’ll be fine.”

“Jamison! Jamison!” Mako yelled. The young man turned his face slightly to face him, but he could tell he was too weak to fight back.

“Mako?” he slurred out.

“You know what? I don’t care. I don’t care if he screams bloody murder. None of this would have happened if he hadn’t run away.” 

She harshly grabbed Jamison by the hair and pulled him so he would face her. “This is your parents’ fault. They wanted to do the ritual themselves, and look at what happened! So many people died!” 

“My-” Jamison had trouble focusing. “My parents?”

“They knew we had to do the ritual here, but they decided to do it themselves; guess they wanted to be seen as important. Now they’re dead, and they almost ruined it all. But we got you.” She let go of him, his head banging painfully against the table.

“You-” Mako hissed at Dora. He could see Jamison starting to tear up. “What’s wrong with you? What is wrong with all of you?!”

“Everyone has a use to society, Rutledge. Even those who don’t seem to give a thing,” she pointed at Jamison with her knife, “can serve as fodder to those who can.”

“You’re fucking sick.”

“Mayor, it’s time,” the doctor interrupted.

Mako gritted his teeth. His blood was boiling. Dora grabbed Jamison’s remaining arm and made a deep cut across his arm. Blood started to spill, and she positioned his arm so the blood would drip directly onto the floor. 

The lights started to flicker, then began to turn red. Reddish shadows started to climb up the trees, just like in the video. Jamison was moving softly, but couldn’t get away. They were recording the event. Mako could feel the earth shaking beneath him.

He started to sweat like a pig, his arms locking up. He had to do something. 

Mako mustered all of his strength and pulled at the handcuffs. More blood dripped to the floor. Mako clenched his teeth and pulled until the handcuffs broke, freeing him.

He immediately got up and punched the person closest to him, the bartender. He went down like a sack of potatoes. Those in the circle took a panicked step back.

“I told you to handcuff him!” Dora screamed while she scrambled for the gun on her back. Mako was attacked by the other members, but he just punched them in the face with great force. 

“I was handcuffed,” he whispered, punching the rest of the group. Dora had the shotgun pointed at him and pulled the trigger. Luckily, she was a shit shot, and the slug completely missed.

Mako grabbed the shotgun with his palm and yanked it harshly. The barrel was still hot, and it hurt his hand a little. He kicked Dora down to the ground hard, knocking the wind out of her. They may have been cultists, but they were nothing to the adrenaline-high Mako. Some of them pulled their knives, but apart from a few cuts, Mako overpowered them easily. The police officer did have a gun, but Mako knocked him cold before he had the chance to get it out. 

He could stay there and kill them all. And he wanted to, too. He pointed the shotgun at Dora for one second, but the sky was turning red, the lights were flickering, and the ground was shaking. He had to get Jamison out of there. Jamison came first.

“Mako…” Jamison whispered, shaking fingers reaching for him. 

“I got you,” Mako said gently. He ran his arm through the shotgun’s strap, carrying the weapon on his back, and lifted Jamison, holding him in his arms. “Don’t worry. I got you.”

Jamison was still bleeding, but it wasn’t fatal. The important thing was to get him out of there as soon as possible. There didn’t seem to be any trails or roads, so Mako just picked a random direction and ran as fast as he could, carrying the young blond with him, holding him tight. 

“No! Don’t let him go! Don’t-”

An inhuman screech echoed through the woods. It hurt Mako’s ears and dug deep into his brain. 

“No! No! He is here, I promise!” he heard Dora scream. “I promise - the priest took him! We had him here! We-”

Mako looked over his shoulder just in time to witness the creature killing Dora. It stabbed her in the chest, and blood gushed out of the wound like a fountain. With appendages that grew out of its body, it stabbed the others, ripping them apart. Mako looked forward as the screams of the people echoed through the forest. The wet sounds of their bodies being torn were disgusting. He kept running without stopping. 

His lungs were hurting. He continued to run, but his legs were giving out. It was too much for him. Even though Jamison basically weighed nothing, Mako could feel the exhaustion seeping in. He could hear the demon approaching. He felt it.

The woods were dark, not even the moonlight reaching them. Mako spotted a ditch in the darkness and went down in it, careful not to fall or drop Jamison.   
Once he was at the bottom, he tried to calm his nerves, soothe himself. But he could hear the sounds of death above him, people still screaming as the demon murdered them.

Jamison was barely conscious, looking up at Mako with tears in his eyes. But he said nothing. Mako just held him close, his heart beating hard against his chest.

Rustling sounds came from his side. Mako quickly turned around, and as he was trying to retrieve the shotgun on his back, he noticed it was the doctor from before. There was blood smeared all over him, his pale eyes wide and manic, lip shaking in fear. He had survived the massacre and was on the run, as well. If Mako shot him, the noise would attract the demon. 

The doctor’s manic eyes fell on Jamison’s limp figure. His smile went wide, showing pearly white teeth as he stared at the young man and then back at Mako. 

He opened his mouth, ready to scream for the demon to come.

The man was pretty close. Within Mako’s reach, in fact. One arm still holding Jamison close, he snatched the doctor by the neck with the other. His huge palm closed on it, blocking his air flow. The doctor choked, sharp fingers digging at Mako’s huge palm, but Mako’s grip was too strong. His face started to go purple and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. 

In one swift movement, Mako twisted his wrist and snapped the doctor’s neck. He stopped struggling, body going limp. Mako let go of him and his dead body crumpled on the dirt. Useless. Lifeless. 

Jamison pressed his face against Mako’s chest, having just witnessed him killing the doctor. He was silent. Mako just caressed his hair softly, soothingly.   
They couldn’t stay there. He needed to get them to his home. At least it was blessed. 

Mako pressed a kiss on Jamison’s forehead and stood up, moving forward quickly, before the demon could find them. He came across a familiar creek, and he knew he was near home. 

Mako followed the water current, noting the landmarks he knew in the past. It was nerve-wracking, knowing the demon was out there and looking for them, but if he stopped, it could mean death. He could hear the creature far away, searching and destroying everything in its path. 

His heart was going to explode from anxiety, Mako was completely terrified. He ran for what felt like hours until he finally reached his home.

The door was wide open and his truck hadn’t been confiscated, thankfully enough. Mako didn’t look back as he ran inside, closing the door quickly behind him.

He’d done it. They were finally at home, their safe haven. He knew the demon wouldn’t be able to breach it. 

He finally gave his legs permission to collapse. They buckled under him and his ass hit the ground. He held Jamison tightly, accidentally squeezing him a bit too hard.

“Sorry,” Mako whispered. “You okay?”

“My parents wanted to-” Jamison choked up. “They were going to kill me. They were gonna kill me.” 

He was crying now, weakly holding onto Mako’s shirt and pressing his face against his chest. Fuck, what was he supposed to say? All of this was so fucked up. He had absolutely no words for Jamison. The only thing he could do was hold him close.

“Thank you,” he whispered after a while, still crying. Mako just soothed him, holding him tenderly. 

But they both knew the worst wasn’t over. 

“Can you move?”

Jamison tried. The anesthesia was wearing off, and while he was able to move a little, Mako helped him stand up and directed him to the couch.

Everything was a mess. The police officers had pretty much ransacked his home, and most of his things were out of place. 

They were never able to figure out if the salt worked, but the circle had been pretty much destroyed by the police, so whatever. They would have to guess the result. Dora had taken most of his things, but luckily for him, they didn’t seem to have taken everything. They must have known which items were evidence and which were just his personal belongings. 

Candles and rosaries were left behind, but unfortunately they had taken the holy water. A pain in the ass; it was the thing they probably needed the most. 

“What do we do now?” Jamison asked, still on the couch. He seemed more lucid with every passing second. “This is it…right?”

“Yes. It’s going to attack us. It’ll come here, soon.”

“Can’t get inside, though? Yer house is blessed.”

“Yes. But I don’t think it won’t try.” Mako bit his lip. “It’s time to get rid of it once and for all.”

“Do you have another gun?” Jamison asked.

“No.” Mako shook his head. “But-” 

He heard some noise behind him. He was on edge, and turned around to see Jamison making noise in the laundry room.

“What-”

“Makin’ some bombs. Just in case.”

Wait, _bombs_?!

Mako rushed to the laundry room and, indeed. Jamison had some empty alcohol and soda bottles, their contents having been spilled on the ground. Jamison was filling them up with bleach and other random cleaning chemicals.

“What are you doing?! You’re going to blow yourself up!”

“Nah; know my shit. Know this stuff.” He smiled. “A+ in chemistry, mate. Me only good class.”

“But what is this?”

“If this fucker gets too close, we give it a taste.” He was very carefully filling the bottles up. Once they were full, he screwed the caps in place. “Just throw ‘em and they explode. But we got to be careful, though.”

“You know how to make bombs?!” In retrospect, it wasn’t that important and this was not the time. However, he had to admit he was pretty horrified/amazed.

“I _know_ what to add to make a bomb. Like I said, I fuckin’ am good at chemistry. I’ve done a couple in the past, but just flash ones.” He gave most of the bottles to Mako and grabbed as many as he could himself. “I haven’t blown anyone up.”

“I’m sorry. I’m just-it is not a usual skill.” Mako carefully grabbed the bottles, worried about jostling them around too much. They both went to put them up front for easy access. “This is very smart. I don’t even dare mess with this stuff, but you figure this out. You’re very smart-”

“Nah,” Jamison interrupted. “I’m a piece of shit.”

The realization of what Jamison just said hit Mako in the face like a bag of bricks.

Those people knew Jamison would die. They all knew. They beat him down, kept him tied to this town to prevent him from ever leaving. From ever becoming someone who would be missed. Since the moment he was born he was chosen as their sacrifice, and with that, his entire life was made to be miserable. To suffer.

Mako was glad they were dead.

“Hold on.” Jamison put the bottles on the counter and went back to the laundry room. He returned holding an axe. “Saw this there.”

“You know how to use one?”

“Just swing, right?”

The kid was far too thin and weak to use it properly, but Mako had no more guns or anything else he could give Jamison to protect himself. The axe would have to do. 

“How are you feeling?”

“Better, Kinda…kinda woozy, though.” 

“Stay close.”

“What’s the plan?”

Mako gulped.

“Survive.”

Mako leaned over and placed a kiss on Jamison’s lips. It was tender, a promise that they would survive. That he wouldn’t let it kill Jamison. 

“Hey.” Jamison smiled. “I love y-”

 

The house shook violently. Something had crashed against the front door, a horrible hiss following. It must be the demon. The demon crashed against the house once more, but as it touched the walls, it hissed horribly in pain. It couldn’t touch the house. Thank God he decided to bless his home several years ago.

“ _GIVE HIM TO ME_ ” it screamed from outside. The yells and screams were like nothing Mako had ever heard before. It hurt his ears, and it sounded like thousands of voices were hollering at the same time. “ _GIVE HIM TO ME!_ ”

“Holy shit!” It crashed against the wall once more, and while the house shook, it was still in good condition. “You think it’s going to bring it down?!”

“Can’t. Can barely touch it. It’s blessed.” At least Mako hoped he was right. He tightened the grip on his shotgun and pointed it at the door. 

“ _GIVE HIM TO ME!_ ”

“Stay close,” he whispered to Jamison, who was shaking. Mako could feel sweat roll down his neck. His mouth was dry and he, honestly, wanted to cry.

Suddenly all the hissing and screaming stopped. They stayed still for several seconds, anxiously waiting for the next hit, but it never came. 

“Is it gone?” 

“It’ll be back. I don’t think it’ll be that easy-”

Almost on cue, the sound of something crashing against wood echoed through the forest. At first Mako thought that the demon had slammed itself against the walls of his house once again, but the lack of screaming and hissing told him otherwise. 

“Wait, do you hear that?”

The sounds of roots being pulled out of the dirt, accompanied by the sound of something very, _very_ heavy falling. Mako had just a couple of seconds to react before he realized what was happening. 

“Look out!” Mako shoved Jamison to the ground and he bent down, protecting his head.

A tree fell on top of the house, completely destroying the laundry room. Dust kicked up along with splinters, debris from the room spilling further inside the house.

“Fuck!” Mako coughed, lungs filling up with dust. “It’s trying to get us out! It-” 

The distinguishable sound of another tree falling down interrupted him. Mako grabbed Jamison and protected him with his own body, bracing himself for impact.

The tree fell, crushing Mako’s bedroom. There was a big opening through the rubble where the demon could slip inside.

Panicked, Mako pointed his shotgun at his now-ruined bedroom, but the demon still screamed from outside.

“ _GIVE HIM TO ME! GIVE HIM TO ME!_ ”

Jamison held tight to Mako, out of breath. “It can enter - why can’t it?”

“The house is blessed. It’s - even if it is being destroyed it is still a house. It can’t enter.”

“It’s going to fuckin’ crush us!” 

The ground shook violently. More screaming came from outside, horrible screeches that hurt Mako’s ears. Another tree came down and crashed on the front porch. 

Mako shielded Jamison from the debris and the splinters with his body. Part of the roof and the entire front section of the house had been destroyed. Mako felt the cool air of the night, and when he opened his eyes he saw it. 

The demon, Edacitas, was standing in front of his house. It was taller, about the size of his house. Veins and lumps of flesh hung out of it like a butchered animal. It looked like a bunch of skin and meat piled up together, cancerous growths protruding from it. As it moved, more flesh hung out of it, pieces of bone and teeth penetrating the lumps of skin. It stank like rotten meat. 

The holes where the eyes should be had thick veins and raw muscle hanging from them.

“prIEst,” it called to him. “pIG. lITTle pIG.”

Mako was frozen in place, curled around Jamison. It couldn’t enter their house. It couldn’t. Otherwise, it would have entered the house. They were safe.

“pIGS.” The skin bubbled up as it grew, terrible, spilling all over itself. “pAthETIc swINE”

“Go hide.” Mako shoved Jamison behind him. “Go, go! Come on!”

The blond did so without saying anything. Mako grabbed his shotgun and aimed it at the thing. The demon flailed its veins in the air like tendrils, screeching. 

He shot it. The slug hit the demon, and it screamed more. Blood and meat juice spilled from the blow, but more meat and veins poured out of it, healing the wound. 

“You gotta be kidding me,” Mako whispered, exasperated. He shot it again, but the same happened. The flesh regenerated itself immediately.

Mako took a step back. The demon slammed itself on the ground. It shook the earth, making Mako begin to lose his balance. The roof began to cave in even more. Mako threw himself out of the way, still holding his shotgun, covering his head and trying to not get crushed. 

Debris managed to hit him, and he fell forward. He could feel his body roll out, his mind becoming a frenzy.

He then realized he had jumped out of the house. 

His stomach went cold. Mako grabbed his shotgun and pointed it at the air immediately, skin burning and heart beating. He tried to crawl back, but he wouldn’t make it into the house in time. Mako saw Edacitas looming over him. He shot it. Blood and pus spilled out, but it healed immediately. 

The head peeled open like a three-pronged jaw, a tongue rolling out. Teeth decorated the inside of its head, and horrific whispers reached his ears. Mako’s body went stiff, jaw clenching. His mind was drowned with these horrible whispers. The corner of his eyes began to water. He couldn’t move. 

“pIG,” it whispered. The tongue lurched forward.

Mako tried to scream as the barbed tongue pierced his skin  
iTUh hurh t and itt sta ng ggg ggg l i k kkkkeee a a a a c id it

 

hURts

 

 

It hurtsssssssssssssssssssssssssss

 

SsssSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSssssssssssssssssss

 

sMELLLLLLLL Of rotttttttttttttttttt t-t- t--t--t- t-t-tt----t-t- enn n nnnnnn nnn nnn mmmeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeat  
M m emmem mmem at

 

Bleed

 

blEED BLEED blee lelll bleeeeeddddddddddddd


	17. ;

1\. Head, Ears, Cheek, Jowl

2\. Neck

3\. Shoulder, Blade bone, Spare Rib.

4\. Hand and Spring

5\. Hock

6\. Rack of pork, Cutlets, Boned and rolled loin

7\. Loin, Loin chops, Chump end, Fillet, Tenderloin, T-bone chop.

8\. Belly  
*8.1. Thick End  
*8.2. Thin end

9\. Rump, Pork steaks

10\. Leg Escalope.  


11\. Tail.

12\. Trotter.

_(Fig. 1)_


	18. Country Style Ribs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was so, _so_ cold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ;)

It was so, so cold.

It bit at your toes, at the tip of your nose. It made your lips hurt and your fingernails twitch. 

It was so, so cold.

 

The phone began to ring on the nightstand. It took several rings before a pale hand popped out from under the sheets, feeling around for the phone. After a couple of tries, the hand grabbed the phone, pulling it underneath the blanket cocoon.

“Awh,” a voice came from under the sheet, “damnit.”

The sheets were kicked off of the bed rather rudely. It was too cold; winter was coming soon. Showering would be a nightmare, but not showering meant feeling icky all day.

After placing the phone back on the nightstand, the sheets were next. They still smelled good enough, so the blankets were piled back on the bed. Doing the bed would come later. 

 

**[Rita <3<3] [9:11 a.m.]:** hey wake up hey hey hey hey yhyeh

**[Rita <3<3] [9:11 a.m.]:** wakeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee uppppppppppppppp

**[Rita <3<3] [9:13 a.m.]:** dont forget prof kovack wants to check the propositions today at the lab at 10:30

**[Rita <3<3] [9:13 a.m.]:** waek upppp

 

The soft sound of the water falling from the showerhead echoed in the small bathroom. Cold fingertips grabbed the toothbrush, starting the routine for the new day. A quick glance in the mirror to make sure everything was in order.

 

**[Rita <3<3] [9:21 a.m.]: **aaaamyyyyyy wake uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuup

 

She looked the same as always. Maybe a bit more tired, but that was normal. Amy yawned and didn’t cover her mouth, doing funny faces all the while. She licked her lips and made sure there was nothing different on her face (no pimples, no moles, all good and dandy). Once the water was hot enough, she hopped into the shower, her phone going off with notifications in the other room. 

It took her about twenty-five minutes to get completely ready. She had ignored her phone throughout, finally picking it up and typing a reply.

 

**[Amy ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ 1 DAY !!!] [9:36 a.m.]:** omw

**[Amy ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ 1 DAY !!!] [9:36 a.m.]:** was taking a shower but im gonna get there. Got time for starbucks. Want something? 

**[Rita <3<3 [9:38 a.m.]: **yes!!!! Bring me a moka frapp now plz

**[Rita <3<3 [9:38 a.m.]:** bring somethin for the prof u know what he likes

 

Amy chuckled as she shoved the phone into her jeans pocket. It would be cold outside, so she grabbed a sweater and put it on. She sighed, picking up her rather heavy backpack and leaving the room. 

It was a Saturday, so there were numerous groups of students hanging out in the dorm hallways. Some were carrying their laundry down the hall, others just talking. Amy yawned as she made her way towards the laboratory.

She made sure to stop at the campus’ Starbucks, buying three drinks in total. One for Rita, one for the professor, and the other one for her. She carried them very carefully, making her way towards the laboratory.

 

The doors to the laboratory were open. She quickly took a glance at the clock; she was early by twenty minutes. She smiled at her punctuality, carefully slipping inside. As expected, professor Kovack was already there. He was always extremely early, but so was Amy, so whatever. 

“Morning!” she greeted him, going over to his desk and leaving the White Latte next to him. 

“Trying to bribe me, are you?” He smiled, pulling the beverage close. “You know the rules, Mason. Lab coat?”

“Oh- sorry, yeah.” She went to her desk, which she shared with Rita. She placed the other two beverages down, opened her backpack, pulled out the white lab coat, and put it on immediately. Her name was embroidered with pink thread, crooked and shitty; but it was hers, and that was important. 

There were already other students in the laboratory, but not all of them. Rita grabbed the coffee and took a big gulp from it, keeping her eyes on her computer. “Hey,” she said, nodding at Amy.

“Hey.” Amy sat down, pulling her own laptop from her backpack and turning it on. “You showed him your work already?”

“Making some last minute changes.” She bit her lip. “Just want to make sure everything is okay.”

“Yeah.” Amy waited for her computer to turn on. She had a knot in her stomach. “I’ll just deliver it as it is.”

“What? Really?” This made Rita unglue her eyes from her own computer. “You’re not going to check it a last time?”

“I mean,” she shrugged, “I stayed up until like, three in the morning to make sure it was okay. And I think it’s okay.”

“You got some balls, Amy.” She took another drink from her coffee.

Amy chuckled, watching more students arrive. She waited for her computer to boot up, opened her Word document, took a very deep breath, and got up.

 

\---

 

“Aw, yeah!” Amy was basically dancing in place. 

“Lucky bastard!” Rita chuckled. “You got your proposition approved on the first try! I have to modify mine and present it next week.”

“Awh, sorry, Rita.”

“It’s okay.” She shrugged, happy. “At least one of us won’t be worried for the rest of the week.” Rita walked towards Amy and hugged her from behind. She pressed a soft kiss on her jaw. “Also, happy birthday.”

“Oh!” She giggled and kissed Rita back. “That’s today, right?”

“You were too busy working on the proposition. You forgot!” Rita kissed her on the lips, a soft peck. “You should modify your message status, too.”

“Yeah, yeah!” She chuckled. “Officially twenty-one. What do you want to do today, babe?” 

“Me? It’s your birthday! What do you want to do?”

Amy thought about it. She really didn’t have many plans for her birthday; she had been too busy with homework. 

“Oh! There is going to be a film festival here. I was thinking we could go?”

“It’s your twenty-first birthday, and you don’t want to go to a bar? You’re killing me!”

“Awh, we can do that after, if you want.”

“We’ll see. But sure, let’s go to the festival! But that’s not until later tonight. What do you want to do in the meantime?”

Amy thought. “Hey, let’s get breakfast, no?”

“Starbucks isn’t enough for you?”

Amy shrugged, Rita laughed, and they both went to one of the small restaurants just outside the campus.

 

It was a very modest place, owned by an old couple. She always got the same thing: quiche.

The quiche was really good, and while it was one of the best things she’d ever had, it didn’t beat the quiche she tasted years ago, in a small shack in the woods. She checked her phone, but there were no messages. It was okay; she knew that smartphones weren’t the Priest’s strong suit. She did have many texts from her friends.

 

**[Ana eats your cookies] [11:14 a.m.]:** Amyyyyyyyy happy BIRT H!!! HAPPY BIRHTDAY!!!

**[Monalisa] [11:15 a.m.]:** u can drink now u madman what do u say we hit the Hog Bar and we get fuckin shitfaced!!1

**[Penelope] [9:11 a.m.]:** she dosnt dirnk !!! u know it.

**[Penelope] [9:11 a.m.]:** also happy birht

**[Amy ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ 21 birthday!!!] [9:36 a.m.]:** lol i gotta drink my first shot of tequila a la Monalisa. Nah me and Rita got plans we gonna go to the film festival tonight if any1 want to come.

**[Amy ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ 21 Birthday!!] [9:36 a.m.]:** also thank you all!!!!!!!!  <3<3<3

**Ana eats your cookies] [11:14 a.m.]:** film festival??? Ugh u goddamn nerd. Ye we comin. 

 

The rest of the messages were approval of the idea. Amy thanked them all as she ate her quiche and listened to Rita talk about the new movies she wanted to watch, and how maybe before going to the film they should do something else. She was right; the festival would be at night. They could probably afford to kill some time. 

They spent the day doing random things. Mixing themselves with the high school students. Joining art lectures that weren’t on their curriculum. Lying on the grass, counting clouds and talking about their shapes. 

 

It was a lovely day. Night came, and with it the festival. The rest of their friends reunited with them, all hugging Amy and wishing her a happy birthday.

The movies were the artistic kind, some of them kind of very boring. The others were okay. Honestly, Amy didn’t know anything about actual cinema, but watching the movies and making fun of them along with Rita and their friends was good enough for her. 

Popcorn spilled from their containers and onto the grass they were sitting on top of. Amy’s fingers were salty as she licked them before grabbing another handful of popcorn. The sodas were scattered around them as they watched the woman on the screen become a butterfly for… reasons. 

Rita was at her side. She would hold her and eat from her popcorn, and Amy would eat from her potato chips.

 

Hours passed, and the movies were over. They all shared a chocolate birthday cake, but they had no cutlery, so they ate it with their hands, wiping the frosting in their dirty summer dresses. Who cares? You could only be young for so long. 

Mona had brought beers with her, and she shared the cans around. They all cheered as Amy drank her first (legal) beer. It tasted bitter and warm. It was the best beer of her life. 

It was almost midnight, and the festival was over. They left the screens on, however, which the students used to pick another movie to watch. Amy’s friends stayed, trying to pick what movies they should put on next. Amy cradled close to Rita, pressing her face next to her side.

Rita kissed her on the forehead, smiling.

Amy’s phone vibrated, and excitedly, she reached for it inside her pocket.

 

**[Mako Rutledge] [11:47 p.m.]:** Happy birthday, Amy.

**[Mako Rutledge] [11:47 p.m.]:** I’m sorry for the delay. Couldn’t find my phone. Hope you had a lovely day.

 

Amy smiled softly.

 

**[Amy ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ 21 Birthday!!] [11:49 a.m.]:** thank you so much!!! Will call u tomorrow okay? Thanks  <3<3

 

“Hey.” Rita gently squeezed her while Amy put her phone back in her pocket. “Happy birthday, Amy.”

“Thank you, Rita.” She smiled.

They kissed softly under the lights of the festival, the stars bright above them. The next movie had been picked and was starting, all the students hollering at the title. Amy smiled softly, breaking the kiss and hugging Rita close.

“I love you, Amy,” Rita whispered in her ear.

“I love you too, Rita.”

 

The girls’ friends finally returned, sitting next to the couple. The youngsters sat up, cheering and drinking more cheap beer as the movie started. He recognized the movie.

They were laughing together, eating more cake and getting their faces covered in it. They all looked so full of life. She looked so full of life, so happy.

“What…?”

Mako stood there, watching from afar. He stood out amongst all the students - he was big and old, sticking out like a sore thumb - but no one saw him. Everybody ignored him as if he didn’t exist.

“What is this?”

His eyes were burning. Tears were spilling from the corner of his eyes. Amy was there. Amy was alive. She was in college, happy and alive. She had her own life. 

The last thing he remembered was being attacked by the beast. Pain had enveloped him. And now…and now this. This here. This hallucination. It had to be a hallucination; what else could it be? A world where Amy was alive?

“This can’t be real.”

“I can make it real.”

A voice called from behind him. It was…dry and wet at the same time. Old, terrifying. When Mako turned around he expected a demon made out of meat. Instead, an old man stood there, looking at him. His skin was grey, almost rotting, his eyes sunken and red. He couldn’t see his mouth, as the man was wearing a surgical mask. He looked almost skeletal.

“What?”

“All of this. I can make it real.” He approached Mako and stood beside him. He was taller than Mako himself. “The bullet misses. Amy gets a scholarship to go to college, study chemistry as she wanted. She develops healthy friendships, starts a relationship. She accepts herself for who she is and is in the process of becoming a very successful woman. Her life is good and beautiful. She will never feel the burden of her being.”

His long fingers grasped at Mako’s shoulder. He couldn’t stop staring at Amy, alive. Alive.

“She can be alive.”

“H-how.” His breath was hitching. “How?”

He could feel his hot breath next to his ear. It stank of meat. It hissed into his ear. 

“Give me the boy.”

Mako felt his heart drop into his stomach. “What?”

“Jamison. Give him to me.”

“You’ll kill him.”

“What is he but mediocre, a good exchange for someone who deserves life?”

“Everybody deserves to live.”

“Not him. Never him. Some people just do not deserve to exist.”

“She shouldn’t have died. She didn’t deserve to die. Amy…Amy should be alive. She should be alive.”

The fingers dug at his skin. 

“Give me the boy, and I can make this right.”

“Amy didn’t deserve to die.”

“The boy.”

Mako took a step back, away from those fingers.

“Jamison does not deserve to die.”

The demon laughed. “Please, priest. His life is not worth fighting for. He was bred to be naught but fodder to me.”

“Why do you want him? You’ve killed and eaten many.”

“He was PROMISED to me!” The old man was starting to shift, his skin twitching and boils moving. “It was a PROMISE! He was born to feed me! You cannot deny me! You cannot fight me!”

The world around him was shifting. Everything was changing. 

“You promised them all that you would keep the town alive if they fed you. You just want to feed off us. You just want to kill us all, don’t you?!”

“You’re naught but pigs for the slaughter.” His body started stretching over. The stomach inflated, bursting open and spilling organs onto the ground, hanging over the carcass. The old man shifted into the demon Edacitas, screeching. “You’re all but cattle for me. You’re all nothing but my meat to eat. Nothing but meat. Everything is meat.”

“You just want to get stronger and spread. Feeding off humans.”

“You’re all meat! You’re all nothing but meat! Meat that talks, nothing but evOLVEd anIMAa ls lls lssss”. The world was shifting. “T t t t t t think yourreeee superior to dog s. Supe r io r to cows. You uu uu are al meat, fodder, no th ing but stew to f f f f f eed me with. You all- you all are for the s-sl-slaughter.”

The world was becoming undone. Everything was going red, the world curling into itself. Still with a human face, the skull split, revealing the insides of the human head.

 

“And I am the butcher.”

 

He spread everywhere. His fleshy tumors started to grow towards the sky, filling every inch around him with himself. Meat, veins, muscle pulled, screeching until everything was white.

 

\---

 

Mako kneeled in the small room. Blood covered him. There was a horrible silence around him.

Amy lay dead in his arms. Her eyes stared at the ceiling, her blood already dry. Her teenage face stared up, dead.

She changed. One moment she was, the next she wasn’t. The adult Amy he had seen happy and alive with her friends was dead in his grasp, blood pouring from her mouth. 

Mako held her tight. 

 

“This is your fault,” she whispered in his ear. “Why does he get to live, and I don’t?” Amy hissed. Mako couldn’t stop crying.

“Why do you let him live? Why didn’t you let me live?”

“He doesn’t deserve to die.”

“And I do?”

“Amy, I’m so sorry.”

“I don’t forgive you.”

She vanished from his arms. Amy, teenaged Amy stood in front of him. Bullet wound gaping, bleeding. She stared down at Mako with cruel, unforgiving eyes. 

“Amy, please.”

But she said nothing.

 

“Everyone is my feed, priest. You’re all meat to me. You’re all here to feed me. Nothing you do will change that you were all born to make me grow. Make me stronger. Make me spread. Your pathetic little town of Suilla is first. But I’ll spread. I’ll spread and I’ll consume. I’ll consume it all. I’ll lick the meat off your bones, will savor your body fat, will sip your blood. Because I am eternal. 

“And I will consume.”

 

“Mako!”

He could hear a voice, very faint. Very, very far away.

“Mako!”

It kept calling to him. He was still kneeling at Amy’s feet, staring at his blood-covered hands.

“Mako!”

He looked up at Amy. Her eyes were full of hatred. Full of desire to see him die.

 

“I love y-”

Jamison words echoed. He said he loved him. He was going to say he loved him. Jamison loved him. Jamison loved him.

“I love y-”

This wasn’t real.

He looked up at Amy. She was scowling.

“This isn’t real.” He stood up. His hands were no longer covered in blood. “This isn’t real.”

She vanished. 

The bloodstained room vanished. Outside of it was the previous scene, with all of Amy’s friends and the students partying. It all vanished. Nothing was real. Mako was just realizing. This was not real.

It all dissipated in smoke. The world around him came slowly undone, and the demon hadn’t noticed. He had seen through the ruse. It was not real. Nothing that demon could say was real.

“Mako!”

Everything was blank. There was nothing around him.

In front of him stood an adult Amy, staring up at him. 

“I am sorry I couldn’t save you,” Mako whispered one last time, and he closed his eyes.

One soft hand touched his. He opened his eyes and saw her, teenaged and unharmed, staring up at him.

“It wasn’t your fault.”

 

Everything went white.

 

\---

 

**Suilla:** _Adjective._

Definitions:  
**1.-** Pork.


	19. Boneless Sirloin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “ _Amen!_ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It consumes.
> 
>  
> 
> Hello!!! Okay so, i am pretty sure this is the third to last chapter if everything goes alright- the next chapter will be kind of the final and the one after that the epilogue, if all goes as plannned. but who knows! we will see!  
> I for one am so, so excited. This fic is very dear to me because i worked really really hard on it, because i love horror and i wanted to do a truly terrifying, horrifying story. I worked very hard for it!!!!! I really hope i truly managed to horrify and scare you guys- at least in the intended sense. 
> 
> So, while i am happy to know that its coming to an end soon, im also sad, because i worked very hard for it. but I absolutely adored writing it. thank you so much for all your support and thank you for reading it ;_;
> 
> Shot out to my gf trish who was my beta!
> 
> Thank you for reading! I hope you guys like it !

Mako took a deep breath as he regained consciousness. It felt like he hadn’t breathed in a while, lungs burning as he sucked in air. His neck was burning hot, horribly painful, and he felt something oozing out of it. He remembered the demon piercing his skin in the nexus of the pain. He brought a hand up to press it and _fuck_ it hurt. The area was hot and swollen, too. 

He was on his back, laying on the ground. The air stank of meat. Jamison’s horrified screams rang in his ears.

“Mako!” 

He wasted no time. It hurt so bad when he stood up, but he could take it. This was nothing. He had been shot. He had been stabbed by gang members. He had walked away from motorcycle accidents. He could _take_ it. No mystery lunch meat motherfucker would bring him down.

Mako was still holding his shotgun. As he stood up, the demon squatted in front of the house, hands trying to reach inside. He could see Jamison past the demon, holding the axe under his armpit and the Molotov cocktails in his arms.

Mako quickly shot the demon. The slug pierced the skin, making the surface explode. The meat started to heal itself almost instantly, just like the last time he shot it, but it distracted Edacitas. It turned to face Mako, drool spilling from its split face, its poisonous tongue rolling out dangerously.

“Leave him alone!” the priest screamed. Edacitas threw the tree it was holding at Mako. 

“Mako! Watch out!”

The priest gritted his teeth and jumped out of the way, barely dodging it. The demon went back to destroying the walls of the house, trying to collapse it from outside. The house was blessed, but at some point it would stop being a house. Then it would be able to catch and kill Jamison.

Mako continued to shoot at the demon as he rushed towards the house. The demon focused its attention on the priest once more, hissing as it did. Its tongue lashed out, managing to pierce Mako’s shoulder.

It hurt. It hurt so fucking bad. Not only did his skin burn and blood boil, but his mind was flooded with horrible things. Images of the past, of Amy’s death, the look in her eyes. The event flashed before his eyes, worming its way inside his brain, screaming at his mind, clutching at his soul and bleeding him dry.

 _No_.

It was _not_ his fault.

His mind burned, but his hand reached out for the barbed tongue that had impaled his shoulder. He ripped it out of his body, stopping the stream of horrible thoughts being injected into his brain. His hand bled from the tongue but he still held it, and with his other hand he pulled the trigger of his shotgun. 

The slug hit the tongue, tearing it apart. The demon screeched, retracting what was left of its tongue into its maw. The severed section remained wrapped around Mako’s hand, twitching and oozing. Tendrils of muscles dangled from the damaged end. 

It howled in pain, giving Mako enough time to rush towards what was left of his house. The demon tried to claw at him but missed as Mako leaped towards the floorboards.

“Mako! Fuck!” Jamison kneeled next to him. “Are you okay?! Holy shit, your shoulder! The tongue! Mako-”

“I’m- it’s fine,” he hissed through gritted teeth. “Are you alright?”

“Yes! It still can’t enter, but…” The demon howled, ripping another tree from the ground. The demon slammed it against the side of the house, sending an explosion of debris and splinters flying. Mako shielded Jamison from it. “Soon there ain’t gonna be a house anymore!” 

“This house is blessed. It can’t get inside. It wants to destroy it; no more house, no more blessing. And then it’ll kill us.”

The demon screamed. Its torso opened up, split in half. Bones and tendrils shot out of it, rising into the dark sky like veins. Animal and human bones poked out of its skin, half-digested skulls still bearing muscle. 

“Mako, what do we do?”

Mako aimed the shotgun and shot once more, directly at the demon’s torso. It hit its innards, breaking one of the human skulls lodged in its intestines. But it did nothing. Blood poured out, but it healed almost instantly, more tendrils covering the wound and growing like a cancerous tumor. 

“It doesn’t work. He just keeps healing!”

Jamison cursed. The young man’s eyes jumped wildly, looking for something. Mako was about to ask him what he was searching for when he scrambled up and retrieved something that had been knocked to the floor. He quickly crawled back to Mako, shoving one of his Molotov cocktails between his legs and leaving the axe beside him. Jamison held a lighter with his hand and immediately used it to light the alcohol-soaked napkin sticking out of the bottle.

“Jamison!” Mako screamed, but the blond didn’t stop. He quickly stood up and threw the bottle directly at the center of the demon’s open chest. 

Just before it landed, Mako tackled Jamison to the ground. The bottle exploded in a ball of fire that quickly enveloped Edacitas. The demon howled in pain, tendrils shooting up at the sky and twitching. It smelled like burnt barbeque meat. 

“Look!” Jamison shouted, pointing at the demon. Mako stared as it danced frantically, fire consuming it all. 

It was meat, after all. 

“I think it’s really hurting him!”

“How many of those you got?”

“Another three!” Jamison lit another bottle and threw it over. It hit the demon in the face, exploding in another fiery ball and making it screech even more.

Was fire really the answer?

“Another one-!” Jamison cackled, lightning the third Molotov cocktail and throwing it. Mako followed it with his eyes as it sailed through the air.

A scorched, skeletal hand caught the bottle before it could detonate.

The demon was still burning hot, but its eyes stared at them both. The meat regrew, boiled over, cooked, growths of flesh sloughing off but also growing at the same time. It healed at a faster rate than it burned, but the healing was all fucked up. Bone grew as well, not just muscle. Teeth protruded from the slits of its body, forming giant mouths all over itself.

“Die,” it said, sharp, venomous. 

It threw the Molotov cocktail back at them.

“Watch out!” Mako grabbed Jamison and ran as fast as he could. The explosion burned his back, pushed them far away. He had let go of the shotgun to grab Jamison, to try and protect him. The fire quickly began consuming his house. It was only a matter of time before they were caught in it, too.

“Mako!” Jamison screamed. “I’m so sorry, I’m so-”

“It’s okay. I’m okay.”

“But it didn’t fucking die! It won’t, it won’t fucking die!” he screamed at the heavens. The demon’s scorched meat kept burning, but the creature did not scream. Didn’t twitch. The meat grew rapidly, only for it to be cooked over. It stared at them, waiting for them to either burn to death or get out of the house. The meat grew around the structure in an impenetrable shield, waiting for them to leap out. Waiting for them to give up. 

“It’s a demon,” Mako remarked. “It can’t handle holy things. It can’t handle holy water.” 

“Is there any holy water here?!” Jamison was starting to lose his will to survive.

“No. They took it all. And what they didn’t-” Mako watched the fiery inferno consume the remains of his home. “It’s gone.” 

“Can’t you bless water?! Can’t you bless anything?!”

“I don’t know; I’m not a priest anymore! I don’t know if it would work! I don’t-” 

The thought of blessing the shotgun shells came to mind, but he had left his shotgun behind when the Molotov hit. It was gone. The axe had been lost, too.

“We don’t have anything to bless. We don’t have anything to attack with! We don’t have-”

Jamison’s eyes went wide. Mako’s eyes widened as well, the sudden realization hitting them like a bag of bricks.

They both looked at the last Molotov cocktail.

“Will it work?” Jamison whispered.

The fire continued to spread. The creature continued to grow, its severed tongue lolling out of its mouth. Every appendage that grew had at least one mouth in it. It wanted to consume. 

“It’s our only chance.” 

Mako held the Molotov cocktail close. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes. Jamison sat in front of him, staring. The sound of the fire burning down his house reached his ears. He concentrated, trying to remember the prayers.

“ _Let us pray for our Father in heaven, who has given us this for our use._ ”

The demon lurched forward. The more the fire consumed, the more it could walk through the rubble. It waited for the fire to reach Mako and Jamison, jaws unhinged, blood spilling from its body. The voices of animals and people long dead rolled out of its maw, vomiting dangerous secrets from the past.

“ _Blessed are you, Lord God, king of the universe; you have made all things for your glory._ ”

Edacitas owned the town. It owned the animals. Owned the people. Owned the corpses that bled into the ground. Owned the dead that were buried in the graveyard. That was how it knew about Amy, about Mako. Mako bled into the ground, and Amy was swallowed up by the earth. It knew. It was the town itself.

“ _Bless this…._ ”

It made sense.

Its veins were the roads. Its meat was the ground. Its teeth were the buildings. Its intestines were the sewers. Its eyes were the streetlights. Its hair was the grass blades, the trees, the vegetation. They were its blood. Part of it. The town was nothing but an extension of the demon. Nothing but a part of its biology. Made from it. Made _of_ it.

“ _…and grant that we may use it in your service and for the good of all people_.”

It approached quickly. Like a little child waiting for its food to be done, waiting for the meat to finish cooking so it could shove it into its mouth. Ready to devour them and spit out their bones.

“ _Father, we praise you through Christ our Lord,_ ” 

He could hear Jamison’s breaths. Mako ignored the rasping of the demon, the smell of burnt meat and wood. He blocked out the way the demon spoke in dead voices, the way it called their names. Instead, he focused on Jamison’s breath, his presence, the way his skin glistened under the light.

“ _Amen!_ ”

This was it. There was nothing else they could do.

Jamison quickly grabbed the bottle. The demon was basically in front of them, maw open and screaming.

“ _I will consume, child._ ”

“Consume _this_!” Jamison screamed, throwing the Molotov cocktail into the creature’s mouth.

It exploded like the others,= into a ball of fire that consumed the demon’s body.

At first Mako thought it was no different from the others, but the fire turned white. The demon screamed, the meat curling into itself as the fire quickly devoured it. 

“Holy shit!” 

“We need to get out of here- the fire! Come on!” Mako grabbed Jamison by the arm and pulled him out. They jumped out of the house as the fire finished consuming it, the demon burning all the while. They stared as Mako’s cabin fell apart and the demon continued screaming.

The fire burned differently. It burned brighter than a star. It hurt Mako’s eyes to look at. It burned the creature like acid, not allowing it to regenerate. Edacitas scrambled and threw itself to the ground, clawing at itself in pain. The screams drilled into Mako’s and Jamison’s ears. 

It burned. It burned more intensely than a forest fire. It smelled of the incense Mako used during his sermons at church. It flared like the holy candles he would light in the past. It begged for its life in thousands of voices. Jamison covered his ears when he heard the voice of his parents begging him to save them. Mako watched it burn.

“Father! Please!” it spoke in her voice. “Please! Please, it hurts!”

He did not cover his ears. He stared as the holy flame consumed the demon inch by inch. It attempted to roll, to get rid of the fire, but every movement made its meat break down into a puddle of liquid and then into nothing. 

It burned for about an hour.

The charred corpse became nothing but liquid that seeped into the ground. It left a white mark on the grass. The holy fire had consumed the demon whole. Instead of spreading, the white fire vanished along with the demon. 

“Wow.”

“Yeah. Wow.”

Mako didn’t know how to process the entire situation. 

His home was gone, too. It had been eaten up by the fire, which was starting to spread to the forest. But they could do nothing to stop it. 

“Mako,” Jamison whispered. “Your home…”

“I know. I…know.”

Jamison stared at the destroyed cabin and at the fire quickly spreading towards the forest. Then he turned to stare at the patch of white left by the annihilated demon. 

The young man fell to the ground and started to sob openly. 

Mako took a deep breath and kneeled beside him. Mako cried, too, overcome by emotions and exhaustion. The demon’s tongue had dissolved from his wrist as well, leaving a nasty mark on his arm. 

“Jamie,” Mako whispered after a while. “We need to go.”

“Yes.” Jamison cleaned up his tears, but they wouldn’t stop coming. “Yes, sorry, I’m sorry, I-”

“No. No, I understand.” 

They were far too exhausted to display proper emotion.

They both turned around and left.


	20. Smoked Picnic Roast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “God knows the holy have done more damage to this world than the Devil ever could.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They leave.
> 
> AHHHH HELLO ITS HERE FINALLY
> 
> I'm sorry this one took me a while- the holidays were quite stressful! but i hope y'all had a fantastic christmas and a happy new year!!! i sure did!
> 
> This is the second to last chapter! next chapter will be the epilogue. I had a LOT of fun writing this, and I adored it with every second of my soul. The next chapter will be just kind of like. to finish off the story. 
> 
> I hope you guys like it <3<3
> 
> shotout to my gf Trish who was my beta reader! thank you bby!
> 
> Hope you guys like it! thank you for reading!

The night sky stank of cooked flesh and smoke. It stuck inside his lungs, making him cough. He would never smoke after this. 

They left the burning house behind. Mako and Jamison walked through the forest, noticing sizeable skidmarks on the ground.

Mako’s old truck had been thrown and dashed against some trees, destroying the vehicle. The trunk was twisted beyond recognition, while the hood had exploded. The driver and passenger seat were damaged, but not as much, surprisingly enough. The demon must have thrown it during its rampage.

“Hold on,” Mako said to Jamison as he approached the truck.

“Dude, that shit ain’t gonna work,” Jamison said, following Mako closely. “It won’t turn on!”

“Even if it still worked, we couldn’t use it. Too easy to track us.” 

“W-what, you think people will try to track us?” Jamison asked, some fear in his voice.

“Maybe police. I mean…it’s better to not risk it. Doesn’t matter, it’s destroyed.”

The driver’s side opened easily, but the door just fell on the ground as Mako opened it. He crawled inside the car, pieces of glass and metal jabbing at him. He was careful to not get sliced by it.

“What are you doing?”

“Looking for something. Looking for-” He opened the glove compartment and the contents spilled onto the floor of the car, among them a set of keys. Old and full of dust because they hadn’t been used in years, but they were there.

“Alright,” he sighed softly, carefully crawling out of the car.

“Keys?” Jamison asked.

“Got a storage unit a few hours from here. Stored everything there when I became a priest and moved here. We should be able to get some things to survive and leave.”

“Okay.”

They moved forward, silently. They could hear the forest burning behind them, accompanied by the sound of their footsteps, the leaves crunching beneath their feet.

“Where?” Jamison asked, suddenly.

“What?”

“You said we would be leavin’. Where to?”

Mako thought about a couple of options. Maybe to the coast; he loved the beach. But somewhere far enough away where no one would recognize them. A small town with few people. Or a big city, where no one would notice them? 

It was a hard decision. “I’ll think about it on the way there.”

“I just don’t understand.” The adrenaline was wearing off. Both of them were starting to get exhausted. It was still night, but the sun would rise soon. “What happened to this place? To this town?”

“They wanted it to survive, so they made a deal with the Devil. Guess they saw nothing wrong with killing people.”

“Yeah but…weren’t they supposed to be religious and shit? Aren’t the first rules of religion ‘don’t make deals with demons’ and ‘don’t kill people’?” Jamison squeaked, angrily.

“Just because they were religious does not mean they were good people.” Mako took a deep breath. They were close to getting out of the woods and onto the main street. The walk was making his knees hurt. “Or they use that to pretend what they’re doing is good.”

“I mean, I _know_ that. Most of these people would hold a fuckin’ Bible in one hand and then throw slurs at me ‘cus I corrupted Willy because I sucked his cock. I just didn’t actually expect them to do…this.” 

Mako stopped as they arrived at the edge of the forest. He could see the street from where they were.

“God knows the holy have done more damage to this world than the Devil ever could.”

Jamison chuckled. “Andrea Gibson, ‘Every Month’?”

Mako chuckled back. “Yeah.”

“I dunno, the Devil did some shit here.” They exited the woods, stepping onto the main street. Parts of it had been torn apart by claws, most likely the demon as it made its way to devour Jamison at the sacrifice slab. 

“The holy invited him in.”

They needed to get a car. Steal one, ditch it halfway there, and walk the rest of the road to get to the storage unit. 

Jamison just nodded, going to the first parked car they could find at the outskirts of the village. It was…disturbing. The car had the keys still in its ignition and the driver’s door was wide open. A trail of blood originated from the floor right next to the car, dragged off for a few meters, and then disappeared. The house’s door was wide open as well, more blood trailing from. Every house around them was the same, doors and windows destroyed. 

Mako could only assume what happened, but it was obvious his suspicions were right. 

Jamison hopped into the copilot seat, Mako taking the driver’s seat. It was a small car, and he had to crouch to fit. But they only needed it for a few kilometers. 

He turned on the ignition and made his way through the main road. 

 

The more they ventured into the town, the more they realized what had happened. 

The town had been ravaged. The streets were almost completely destroyed, splatters of blood littering the pavement. Edacitas must have feasted on the town before attempting to kill Jamison and Mako.

He thought about that for a minute. Even if they had successfully sacrificed Jamison, there would have been nothing to save. The town had been destroyed.

He took a deep breath and drove through the disaster. The forest fire had already started to consume the buildings; it was only a matter of time before it consumed the rest of the town. Mako didn’t want to think if there were even survivors. He just drove without thinking. Without looking behind.

He did take a glance at the copilot’s seat. Jamison was slouching in his seat, knees bent against the dashboard of the car so his head was below the window. He said nothing, just stared at the dashboard, obviously not wanting to see what was outside.

Mako placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently to soothe him. Jamison slouched even more, now half of his body hanging off the seat. Mako focused on the road. 

Before they exited the town, he made a turn to the right. Jamison felt it, but didn’t move from his place. Instead he just stared at Mako, confused and worried. “Where are ya goin’? Thought it was straight till the highway?”

“One more stop.” Mako didn’t elaborate, but Jamison didn’t ask further. He had gained his trust and killed a demon for the young man; he knew Jamison wasn’t worried about Mako’s intentions.

He drove for some minutes until they finally reached the destination. 

The demon’s rampage hadn’t reached that place. Why would it have? There was no living being in it. Mako stopped the car, taking a deep breath as he took the keys out of the ignition. 

“It’s clear,” he said to Jamison as he got out of the car. Jamison followed close behind.

The graveyard had been left in peace. It seemed not even that thing would resort to eating corpses. The priest made a beeline towards a very specific grave, far away from the others, isolated. Abandoned.

Mako stood in front of Amy’s grave. He never really had the guts to visit more than once, not because everyone hated him, but because deep in his heart, he felt it had been all his fault.  
So many years had passed, and it still hurt to think of it. Of everything that happened to her, to him, and to Jamison. They didn’t deserve it. Amy didn’t deserve to be there. 

She should be alive, in college, away from that place. Just likr Jamison, who deserved a good life, not to be a sacrificial lamb. They had destroyed Amy and tried to destroy Jamison. 

“It wasn’t your fault.”

Jamison was beside him, looking down at the grave. Mako sighed softly.

For the first time in so many years, he truly knew it was not his fault. 

They remained there for several minutes, but Mako knew they had to go. They couldn’t risk the authorities or the fire reaching them. He didn’t know if the fire would reach the graveyard, but he didn’t want to stick around to find out. With a heavy heart, he kneeled and patted the gravestone gently.

“Goodbye, Amy.”

They both silently returned to the car. The air was filling up with smoke from the intense fire, black soot falling like snow. Mako turned on the ignition and they left.

 

\---

They finally got to the highway. He patted Jamison on the shoulder, indicating that it was safe to look out. The young man scooted back into his seat, rolling down the window of the car and taking a very deep breath of the fresh air. Mako did so too, the cold breeze of the morning cooling his aching lungs. 

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Jamison lean out the window, half of his body hanging from it. Mako quickly grabbed him by the back of his shirt, scared that he would fall off and break his skull, but Jamison simply screamed into the wind.

“Fuck you!” he hollered. “Fuck you!” 

Mako kept his hold on him, but didn’t stop driving. He could feel the young man tremble, all that anger and rage he had kept hidden finally popping. 

“Fuck you!” he continued to scream at the sky. “Fuck all of you! Fuck you all! You fucking- fuck you!”

Jamison hung out the window, but didn’t yell anymore. He just had his body out, trembling. He quietly retreated back, cleaning the angry tears off his face. 

Mako took a deep breath and hung his head out of the car.

“What are ya-”

“Fuck you!” 

His deep voice was drowned by the sound of the air. “Fuck you!”

Jamison just stared at him, saying nothing. 

Jamison had been right in doing that. It felt good. 

“Okay,” he sighed, throat hurting from screaming. 

“Okay?” Jamison asked.

“Okay.” He smiled back. 

 

\---

They ditched the car an hour later. When they reached the nearest cliff they could find, both men got out of the car and pushed it until it fell and crashed. The vegetation of the mountain and the trees covered the car, and it would take a very long time to find. They walked for about an hour, talking. Talking about where they would live, about what would happen now. Talking about how Jamison was so grateful to Mako and how he couldn’t believe he was alive.

Mako talked, too. About Amy, about what the monster made him see. About the offers he made to Mako, offering him Amy’s life in exchange for Jamison’s. But he didn’t do it. 

“It was not right.”

Jamison cried a little. He knew not too many people stood up for him, but Mako did. If not him, then who else?

The sun was starting to hurt their skin when they came across the storage units. Place was pretty empty, so it was easy to sneak in. Mako used his keys to open the unit, lifting the metal curtain.

After so many years, the smell of the oil was still there. The smell of alcohol with a smidge of blood, something that made him feel like he was really home.

“Whoa,” Jamison whistled behind him. “Mako, this is yours?”

The room was filled with things from his past. Some clothes, photographs of people who weren’t alive anymore, mementos from a life he regretted. A past he had decided to leave behind. In the middle of the room stood his most beloved possession. 

He took the tarp off, a cloud of dust and dead bugs flying in the air. The bike under it was as good as he had left it, several years ago. It was beautiful; dented in places, but that gave it personality. It spoke of its past. It was his old bike, before he decided to stop being a biker and became a priest. 

“Should still work. Help me drag it outside.”

Jamison helped, carefully dragging the heavy bike out of the dusty room. The weight of it felt good in his hands, familiar and calming. He used to come here every few months or so and take a ride on his bike, away from the town. A break from being a priest. After what happened with Amy, he went less and less until one day he just stopped. He hoped the bike still worked. 

Once it was outside, they scavenged everything they could sell. Old rings, necklaces, jewelry that belonged to Mako’s grandmother. He felt bad that he would have to sell them, but his Nana would understand. That’s why they were there, after all. 

They stuffed everything in a backpack Mako had lying around the room. Before closing the curtain and leaving it for good, Mako grabbed an urn that had the picture of his Nana on it.

Jamison gasped when Mako opened the urn and dug his hand inside, getting covered in ash. He quickly reached the wads of cash he had stuffed the inside, shoving them into his shoe and proceeding to close the urn, leaving it where it once was. 

“You stuffed money inside your mom’s ashes?!” Jamison gasped, horrified. 

“That’s a picture of my grandmother, and no.” Mako cleaned the soot from his hand on his pants, dirtying them. “It’s just normal campfire ash. Robbers won’t be sticking their hands in old ladies’ ashes trying to find money.”

Jamison laughed very loudly. It was the first time Mako had heard him laugh like that in a while. It felt good. Like they were safe.

“Should be enough to survive for a while.”

Mako brought down the curtain, locking it. He took his keychain, pressing his thumb against the only other key that was important to him. 

Jamison wore the backpack, jingling loudly as he moved. He did some dances, making the contents jingle even louder. 

“The next town is about an hour away. From there we can go either west or east. Coast, or mountain, or the city.” 

“We’ll decide when we get there, roight?” 

“Yeah.” 

Mako licked his lips and sat on the seat of the bike. The way it gave way under his weight; it was such a good feeling. He’d missed it. Jamison climbed on, sitting behind him and wrapping his arms around his sides, hanging as tightly as he could.

He inserted the key into the ignition and his bike roared to life. A lovely sound that rattled his bones from deep inside. 

“Hang on tight,” he said, before he hit the gas and let the Hog come to life. 

The highway air on his skin felt good, reminded him of his youth. Not when he fought with gangs, not when he ran away from the cops, but when he just drove on the highway, alone. It made his spirit soar in happiness. 

And he was happy now, too. It made his heart full and his fingers tingle. Even if he wasn’t alone anymore, and Jamison pressed his face against Mako’s fat, it still felt good. Maybe better, in a way. They weren’t alone anymore. They were together. 

Mako savored the sounds of the bike as it rode towards the horizon, leaving the smoking heap of a town behind, leaving all the hatred and horrible people behind.

It was the start of something new.

\---

They reached the next town an hour later. They looked a right mess; Mako was covered in dried blood and still sported wounds on his throat and hands. Jamison didn’t look too good either, covered in soot and some other blood, but he was still in better shape, so he was the one to buy bandages and alcohol from the pharmacy. 

They proceeded to clean and bandage each other in an alley behind the pharmacy. It stung like fucking hell when the alcohol cleaned his wounds, especially the one on his neck. At the end of it, they were dizzy, exhausted, and covered in bandages. Not to mention starving. 

Neither of them wanted to deal with people, so they simply went through a drive-thru to buy some McDonald’s. They ate silently at a small park, where a few children were playing. They stood a ways away, careful to not spook anyone. The last thing they wanted was to call attention to themselves. 

The burgers were horrible. The pickles were rancid, the meat was cold, and the seasoning was lackluster. But they tasted like the best thing they’d eaten in years. As shitty as it was, it felt good to finally sit down and eat without worrying if they would be eaten the next day.

Now that he thought about it, he wondered where the meat came from. He looked at the meat of his hamburger, and thought about it. Suilla’s meat plant sent meat to many places, and this was the closest town. 

But Suilla’s meat was juicy and delicious (a deal with the devil will do that for you). This meat was rancid. There was no way it was from it. 

It just made it even more delicious. 

Once they finished, they didn’t stay for much longer. They refueled the bike and drove off. While they ate, they decided to go to the coast on the other side of the country. It would be a long trip, but they could do it. The further away from Suilla, the better. Replace the forest and mountains with the sea and heat. Would be for a nice change of pace. 

That was the plan. Start a life there. How? They would figure that out later. Mako had enough money to rent a small bungalow for some months, and he could pawn off his Nana’s jewelry to get even more money. Figure something out. Living. Not surviving, but straight-up living. 

Surviving was wondering when a demon would kill you. Surviving was wondering what the townsfolk would do to you because they thought you killed a young girl. Surviving was crying in the middle of the night because everything was set against you.

No more surviving. Jamison and Mako made a pact on the picnic table of that shitty park. They wouldn’t survive anymore. They would live plenty. They would enjoy life and not worry about cults or demons. 

They drove for hours, passing various towns until it was night. They had to be about six hours away from Suilla, and Mako didn’t know if the fire had been stopped, or what had happened. To be honest, he was too exhausted to even care. That was a problem for tomorrow.

They arrived at a motel shortly past midnight. The woman didn’t seem to mind their dirty clothes and bandages, simply handed them the key and went back to reading her magazine. 

Opening the door to their motel room and getting inside felt like the end of their journey for the day. Mako was completely exhausted, and he was sure he smelled, too. Jamison was dirty and covered in sweat, as well. The young man quickly called dibs on the shower and made a beeline towards it, undressing on the way. 

Mako simply was too tired, but he took off his shoes and clothes. He peeled off the bandages in front of the room’s mirror, examining the gaping hole in his neck.

It didn’t look too bad. It hurt like fuck, but he had been shot before. The edges of the wound were red and puffy, angry. Hopefully it wouldn’t get infected; he wasn’t sure how to explain the wound to a doctor. 

His hand was slightly burnt, too, from where the demon’s tongue wrapped around it. But it didn’t look as bad as the wound on his neck. 

Jamison showered for about twenty minutes, most likely scrubbing all the blood and soot off. He left the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist, crawling on top of one of the two beds in the room, not even bothering to dress himself. He just sighed softly against the soft bed as it sank beneath his weight.

“I’m so tired.” 

Mako stood up, patting him on the back. “I’m taking a shower.”

“Mmhmm,” Jamison mumbled, already falling asleep.

Mako undressed carefully in front of the mirror, ready to inspect himself. Bruises the size of fists decorated his body, as well as nasty scratches. The bruises would be a pain, but at least he wasn’t dead. 

The shower was too small for him, so he had to stand sideways to be sprayed with water. The hot water felt really good on his skin, even if it hurt his bruises. It washed away all the grime and blood. He scrubbed his head with the shitty motel shampoo and it smelled like roses.

After he was done cleaning himself, he just stood under the spray of water for several minutes, enjoying the feeling. After a while, the water went cold, prompting him to get out of the shower. 

They had some clothes in the backpack, but he was also too tired to actually dig for them. He just wrapped himself with a pair of towels (the first one didn’t cover all of him) and walked out of the bathroom. 

Jamison was already fast asleep on his bed. Mako took off his towels and crawled into the other bed, covering himself with the thin sheets. He turned off the lights on the nightstand, and only a minute passed before he was fast asleep.

 

Something woke him up in the middle of the night, and his first instinct was to fight it. He raised his fist, but a cold hand touched him gently. 

“Sorry- shit, Mako it’s me! Shit, sorry I scared ya, I-”

“Jamie?” He focused his eyes and saw the young man’s silhouette in the darkness. “Is something wrong?”

“No, no. I just…I was feelin’, you know. Was lonely and- that’s stupid. You’re here, on the other bed, but I-”

“No, no. I understand.” He lifted the sheets so Jamison could crawl under them. “Come on.”

Jamison did so, his body cold from sleeping on top of the sheets. Mako sighed, relaxing again and closing his eyes. “Goodnight, Jamie.”

“Night…” 

A few seconds passed before Jamison spoke again.

“Hey Mako?” 

“Yeah?”

“Ya want to stay with me?”

Mako blinked. “What do you mean?”

“I mean-” Jamison sighed. “Ya saved me from the demon, and from a lot of stuff. And I’m grateful but, I mean, ya don’t gotta keep protecting me. If ya don’t want me around, I can just leave. I’ll figure somethin’ out. Ya don’t have to carry on with me.”

Mako turned around, facing Jamison. The mattress whined with every move.

“Why do you think I don’t want you around?”

“I mean, I just don’t want you to think that ya got some sort of…obligation to keep me around.”

“Jamie-”

“I mean. I love ya. But I don’t want ya to think ye have to stay. If ya don’t want to, I can just leave and I-”

“Why do you think I want you to leave?”

“I don’t know! Maybe you do. Everyone does. Maybe you just want to forget that this entire experience happened and start fresh.” 

“Jamie, I love you too. I want you around, and I want to start fresh with you.”

“But,” he hid his face with his hand, “what if one day you just don’t love me anymore?”

“I won’t throw you away, Jamie. I would never do that.”

“How would I know? Even my fuckin’ parents-” Jamison stopped, taking a deep breath. 

“I’m sorry,” Mako said. There was nothing else he could have said. 

“No, I just,” Jamison sighed. “I want to make sure.”

“Jamie. I want to start fresh with you. I won’t leave you behind.” He wrapped him with his thick arms, bringing him close. “I love you. I won’t leave you to die.”

Jamison sighed, nodded, and pressed his face against Mako’s soft chest. Mako could feel the uncertainty in his body. But he loved him, and he was going to make sure Jamison knew that he loved him. Even now that there was no one chasing them, no monster trying to kill them, no people thinking he was a murderer, they would still be there for each other. 

 

For the first time in years, Mako knew he was not alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is Andrea Gibson's poem, Every Month which is referenced in this chapter:
> 
> http://ohandreagibson.tumblr.com/everymonth


	21. Epilogue - Tofu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Fire Destroys Small Town_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Life moves on.
> 
>  
> 
> HELLO!!!!  
> it's here. its finally here. The end!! This is it folk, the end of the fic.  
> This fic is very dear to me because it was the first attempt i made to honest to god horror. I always loved horror and i tried really really REALLY hard to make this thing scary as shit, but in a way that worked. I hope i succeeded!!!
> 
> Anyways, this fic is very dear to me because of that, and because of other reasons. Thank you so much for sticking with it, and with me. Thank you so much, guys. I love you all. I hope you enjoy the end <3<3<3
> 
> shotout to my gf trish who has been a champ and beta read my fics!! thank u bby ilu so much

_**Fire Destroys Small Town** _

_This past Wednesday afternoon, authorities received multiple reports of a fire spreading into the Cibum woods. Firefighters and emergency units worked for a week to extinguish the fire. Its source is unknown, and police are currently investigating what could have caused the catastrophe._

_Unfortunately, the fire spread to the town of Suilla. By the time it had been extinguished, the entire town had been ravaged. Emergency units quickly moved to find survivors._

_Fire Chief Frederick Williams made a statement on the nature of the incident:_

_“It is most likely that the fire started in the middle of the night, somehow spreading silently. The residents were asleep, which is why it spread to dangerous levels in such a short time. However, this doesn’t explain why there were no reports until it got so drastic.”_

_The head of the emergency units designated to retrieve bodies and look for survivors, Daniela Cortez, released this statement to the public:_

_“Most of the casualties seem to have been caused by the fire. However, a significant portion of the bodies we have retrieved died in a violent manner. These corpses had markings akin to an animal attack. We are currently searching the area, trying to find any animal that could have caused this; analysis of the bodies suggest a bear or something similar.”_

_As of this morning, the rescue attempts have stopped for the town of Suilla. The catastrophe left no survivors and has been declared one of the biggest natural disasters in recent memory, wiping an entire town off the map._

_The town of Suilla had a population of 1,000. While small, the town thrived thanks to its meat business. The town of Suilla had premium butcher goods which it distributed to many states._

_When asked for comment, Sheriff Malore from nearby Lakeport said the following:_

_“It stinks of burnt meat”._

_It is unknown what events transpired, and while there is an ongoing investigation to unearth what exactly happened in the small town, there have been no further statements about the current situation._

 

The event would come to be known as the “Suilla Tragedy.”

People talked about it for months, speculating on what really happened. Conspiracy theories unfolded, documentaries were filmed, but none of them were right. 

The mystery of Suilla was never solved.

\---

The air stank of cooked meat. 

The meat sizzled on the grill, the juices leaking out of the patty and bubbling on the hot surface. Onions were set aside on the grill as well, caramelizing. The radio blasted pop music from artists he didn’t know but enjoyed anyway as he flipped the patties in time, the sound of the raw meat hitting the grill ringing in his ears. 

He finished the burgers, assembling them perfectly before sending them up front.

“Two hogs for table 1!” He rang the bell. 

The young waitress came over and carefully took the plates. “Thanks, Mako.”

Mako smiled and went back to the grill. It was a slow day, not too many customers. It was Ron’s day off, so Mako was the one to step into the kitchen and replace his main cook; honestly, though, he did a little bit of everything. Waiter, cook, cashier, janitor; he was there for anything they needed.

It was his restaurant, after all.

Roadhog’s Bar and Grill quickly became one of the most popular restaurants in the small town. He had been lucky; Mako was very well aware that restaurants were a risky business. But it felt right. 

After he and Jamison traveled across the country in his bike, they finally reached a town they liked enough to stay in. It was a beach town, a huge change compared to the woodsy Suilla. The heat felt different, clinging to their skin.

It was perfect.

 

Three years had passed since they arrived. Around the end of their first year, Mako started a restaurant. It had been a risky move, but was worth it so far. Enough money to survive, a way to keep himself busy, and a means to establish himself in the community. Soon enough, the small beach town welcomed them with open arms. 

“Veggie Burger for table three is up!” 

He was craving a cigarette. He quickly grabbed one and put it between his lips as he cooked. He rolled it with his tongue, tasting a bit of the nicotine. He didn’t light it, but having it between his lips helped. He should probably quit smoking; he was getting too old for that.

 

More customers started to arrive as the sun began to set. The night shift cook arrived as well, relieving Mako from his position. Normally at this point, Mako would help serve drinks, but he had spent the entire day as a cook and was pretty tired. He apologized to the bartender, a young woman with many tattoos, but she simply told him that there was no need to apologize. 

Before he left, however, he helped himself to a beer. The bitter taste grounded him, giving him goosebumps with the first sip.

“Hey, ya done?” 

Mako licked his lips, looking at the table closest to the bar. Jamison was sitting there, sprawled out. His feet were on top of the table, sitting all crooked. His smile was crooked as well. There was motor oil on his face and some of his clothes, but the young man didn’t seem to mind. 

“Yeah. Cooked all day, so I’ll leave them to it.”

“Ya micromanage way too much. Let ‘em work like they want!”

Mako sat down in the chair across from Jamison, beer in hand. The young man dropped his feet and sat a little bit straighter, but he was still hunched as he pressed his elbows onto the table and leaned forward.

“How long’ve you been here?” he asked Jamison, taking another swing of the bitter beer. 

“Not too long! Five minutes; didn’t see ya in front so I guessed ye were back cookin’.”

“Yeah. Ron’s day off.” 

“But it’s covered for the night shift, right? Or do ya want me to go back there and cook somethin’ good?” Jamison joked, making cooking motions with his left arm.

“You’re covered in grease and shit. And you don’t know how to cook.”

“Rude? I know how to cook. Sometimes.” 

“You do make good grits”

“Fuck yeah, I do. Fuckin’ best grits on Earth. They deserve an award.”

A chuckle escaped him. What a ridiculous young man. 

“How was work?” Mako asked, offering the beer to Jamison. 

“Nah, I’m good. Work was alright. Car came with a defective piece, but we don’t got it in the shop, so we had to call in to get delivered. Should be here this Friday, which is annoying. But shit happens, eh?”

Mako nodded. “Boss not giving you any issues?”

“Nah. He still kinda wants to me to stick with easy shit, but I already showed him I can work good even with one arm!” 

“Don’t overexert yourself, though.”

“Don’t worry, I know me own limits. Can’t fuck up the other one, huh?” Jamison chuckled, grabbing a handful of peanuts they had on the table. He ate them, licking at his fingers and grimacing immediately, fingers dirty from working at the car shop.

 

Mako came to learn while they were on the road that Jamison had many, many skills. Not only was he brilliant with chemicals, the young man had a knack for understanding motors, machines, and the like. At one point during the road trip, the motorcycle broke down. Jamison was able to not only identify what was wrong with it, but skillfully buy the necessary supplies himself and fix the bike quickly. It was astounding. 

“Yeah, hotwired a car once,” Jamison mentioned while he worked on the bike. They had arrived at a small town just before it died. 

The sweltering heat burned their backs. Sodas and burger wrappers were scattered around them as Jamison worked on the machine, making it look easy.

“Fixed some shit in high school. The car shop was too expensive and the people there were idiots, so people paid me to fix their shit. Bought me weed and shit with it.”

Fascinated, Mako couldn’t stop staring as Jamison fixed their ride. Without thinking, he asked, “How come you never got out of the town with the money you got?”

Jamison was silent for a minute, finishing up. He cleaned his dirty, oily hand on his jeans and stood up, shrugging. “Never figured I would make it anywhere.”

 

But he was somewhere, now. In a small beach town, working at a car shop, fixing cars and bikes. A place where no one thought he was a piece of shit or wanted to see him fail. It was such a change, too. His face glowed, full of happiness and purpose.

Mako wondered if his own face glowed, too.

Once he finished the beer, it was time to go home. It was still quite early, and the place was busy with people, but both of them were tired. He made a final check on the restaurant to make sure everybody was at their stations, there was no one missing, and that things were running smoothly. After being assured that, yes, everything was okay, and after Jamison made fun of his micromanagement one more time, they finally left.

The sound of the waves during the night was soothing. The air smelled of salt, and Mako honestly wanted to take a dive in the ocean. But he also just wanted to get home and make himself a salad. One could take greasy burgers and pizza for only so long. 

“Hey.” Jamison held his hand.

“Hey,”

“The annual cookin’ competition is coming. You gonna be part of it?”

“Is it? I don’t know. Never participated in any of those kinds of events.”

“Hey, I think it would be fun! And I bet ya would win, too.”

“I don’t know what to cook,” Mako mused, but he was already thinking of dozens of recipes he could make for the contest. Quiche, chili, burgers, lasagna; there were so many things to consider. He had to think about it for a while.

“So is that a yes?” Jamison chuckled.

“Huh? I didn’t say-”

“I can tell by yer face. It just got all bright and stuff. I can tell yer excited about this, eh?”

Mako had to admit he was, in fact, a little excited, but he chuckled. “Yeah.”

“Can help ya think of what to cook. I know Lilly is gonna be part of it, and so is Morty.”

Lilly owned the bakery, while Morty owned one of the other restaurants in town. They were going to be tough competition. 

“You could make a burger!”

“Hm. I’ll think of something.”

“I knew you would be excited about it!”

“Yeah,” Mako answered, and wrapped an arm around Jamison, bringing him closer.

 

Their walk home was uneventful. Jamison talked about work, about how Ellis was pregnant, how Joe got engaged. Mako talked about the customers he saw, the regulars. No one new. It wasn’t tourist season yet, so everything was calm in town. 

Once they reached the porch of their home, Mako took a deep breath, taking in the smell of the salt. It filled his old lungs.

“Hey,” Jamison said just before Mako opened the door. “Wanna hang out here on the porch for a bit?”

“Sure. It’s a beautiful night.”

They sat down in front of the door, talking. Looking at the stars, listening to the sound the waves made. 

“Jamie,” Mako interrupted at one point. The young man stared up at him, face still dirty from the motor oil. “Love you.”

“Awh.” Jamison beamed. “Love you, too.”

When Mako kissed him, Jamison tasted of dirt, car smoke, and other chemicals. His lips were soft. And he felt the young man melt into it. Mako started to laugh a little.

“Take a shower. You reek.”

“Ya reek of cooking oil and shit, too! Ya should also take a shower.”

“Maybe we can take a shower together,” Mako boldly suggested.

Jamison face lit up and he immediately smiled coyly. “Ooh, one of those nights, eh?”

“Why not,” he chuckled. The waves crashed against the sea, the sky was clear, the moon was bright and beautiful, and most importantly, they were alive.

 

“We got all the time in the world.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Your past does not define you, and you can always start new. there are always ppl out there who love you for who you are, and maybe you dont feel like at home at home. but one day, i hope you find someone where you can feel safe, and at home.
> 
> Thank you for reading <3<3

**Author's Note:**

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